Criticism of Ladder For Booker T. Washington, by Martin Puryear
This is an essay to criticize a piece by master woodworker Martin Puryear titled Ladder For Booker T. Washington, created in 1996 from ash and maple wood, displayed at The Modern in the City of Fort Worth, Texas. Made from smooth, light wood the ladder appears to extend great lengths, but when viewed from a different angle the ladder is much shorter. The purpose of a ladder is to reach greater heights with ease and safety, but the ladder appears bent and crooked in different areas making for a difficult climb. The lighting in the room also stood out, making the ladder going upwards towards a large fluorescent fixture. The most obvious element of design Martin Puryear uses is shape to create a one-point perspective illusion, making the ladder appear infinite. Another interesting choice of design was the use of smooth, rounded texture of the wood emphasizing a difficult climb. Lastly the artwork uses the value from actual light to make the ladder recede into a bright light. The main principles of design I see are the use of movement and balance. First he uses curving lines and repetition to show movement. The way Puryear repeats the curves of the steps make your eyes move up. Secondly he uses asymmetrical balance making one side of the ladder different than the other, which is different from a normal symmetrical ladder. Booker T. Washington was an African-American teacher, author, advisor to presidents, and leader in the African-American community between 1890 and 1915. Washington had long term goals of building the African-American communities economic strength, focusing on self-help and schooling. However, Washington was set in developing domestic and vocational skills which was opposed by other African-American leaders in the community. To me the ladder represents his climb towards education and entrepreneurship of the black middle-class. The curves and twists show the struggle as an African-American during that time. And lastly the never-ending ambition Washington had for reaching the top. The ladder is a symbol for Washington’s life through slavery and segregation, but also a symbol for success and salvation. Ladder for Booker T Washington is unlike any piece of art I’ve seen before. It has a visual beauty in the simplicity of a ladder, but is also a work from a master carpenter. The artwork also has a deep meaning and relates to African American history. The part I enjoyed most from this piece was how it represents ambition, but the constant climb and struggle. Even if I didn’t know who Booker T. Washington was the ladder still has meaning to the difficulty of everyday life and the seeming impossibility of reaching the top.