Carole Eisner interviewed by Pick Keobandith, Director, Qu-Art, Brussels (English version)

Pick Keobandith: Why do you make sculpture? And what do you like in it?
Carole Eisner: The short answer is it makes me happy to make sculptures. I feel fulfilled. I am doing something that takes thought, vision, (often unique), using my resources to capacity, solving problems that are presented by making a work of art. Developing new thought processes, always going outside the box. I love the material. I find steel is malleable and yields to prodding. It also has a mind of it's own and wants to go back to it's original shape. I have to figure out how to make it stay where I direct it. One can add, take away and add again. When finished, only the structure is visible, the struggle to get there is not apparent. Steel lends itself to monumental scale construction. I like large things. I also like the process of welding.
That's just a quick response.

P.K.: When did you start sculpture ?
C.E.: I started making sculpture in college where I took an introductory sculpture class. We worked in many mediums as we were learning different techniques: clay, wood and stone. We also made armatures and mixed cement to make models. I enjoyed working in wood and stone. The downside was that once you chipped something off, you couldn't change your mind. With cement on an armature, it was like working in clay, but I liked the tactile quality better. I seemed more permanent. I was unaware of direct metal sculpture at the time, though it was being developed as an art form in Europe and by David Smith in America.
I didn't start to make sculpture again until I was married with children. I was home, pregnant with my fifth child, when a friend called and asked if I would like to learn to weld in her aunt's studio. I didn't know what welding was, but headed right down to the studio where I began a new career.

P.K.: It's your second solo exhibition in Europe. Can you tell us about the sculptures you will show in the garden of Abbaye de La Cambre and in the Galerie Valérie Bach - “Le Café Français”

C.E.: The sculptures in the Abbaye de La Cambre, and some at Le Café Français were made from scrap steel found in large metal recycling yards. At the time I did these sculptures, I shared a studio with another woman. Not only did we share welding equipment and
space, but we also had a very large dump truck take us to distant steel yards and cart our finds back to the studio. From the mountains of scrap steel, we each chose entirely different objects to make our sculpture. We critiqued each other’s work and supported each other with our manual labor. In designing a sculpture, the steel objects I chose suggest to me various alternatives and constructions. I spend time considering the different options and envisioning the final form.
Starting a new sculpture, I scan my own scrap heap and choose two or three objects that look like they belong together. I begin by joining these pieces and further develop the sculpture from there. I usually don’t sketch anything in advance. The process is more of an instinctive assemblage than a pre-prepared idea. My concern is that the sculpture should be gestural, light and airy using forms that and belie the heavy and industrial qualities of the steel. I have used parts of bridges, railroad track and train gears, window frames and containers of all sorts. I juxtapose whimsical pieces with geometric and utilitarian parts to make a cognitive whole. Instead of using all scrap steel, my smaller work incorporates many shapes cut to my specifications. I've finished some of the smaller work to a high silver shine, accomplished by using a special grinding wheel. The larger sculptures, in the garden are allowed to rust, then cleaned with a wire brush to a uniform color. I then spray them with a clear acrylic varnish to preserve their finish from the weather.