Quake’s Destruction Opened a Door of Random Breakage for Sculptor

“I’m intrigued with the process of random occurrence,” says George Geyer, who often uses his seemingly favorite phrase in the titles of his works, such as “Architectural Fragment of Random Occurrence.” Fifteen of his new pieces, including architecturally and geologically inspired works composed of broken glass and granite, are on view here through Nov. 4 at the Works Gallery South.

“Your brain can only go so far,” says the artist, who randomly breaks his materials with a hammer before gluing them back together into finished pieces. “If you can remain calm enough to go with that process of random occurrence, to go with whatever happens, then maybe you can come up with something innovative, more interesting and . . . more human.”

Geyer, 55, a trained ceramist who is also currently featured in USC’s “Forbidden Entry” exhibition in Los Angeles with his “Floating Corridor of Forbidden Entry” installation, says the ideas for his new works came about as a result of the earthquake that rocked Southern California in October, 1987.

“I lost three pieces in that earthquake,” says Geyer, whose work was on show at the time in the Works Gallery’s Long Beach space. “They crashed and were destroyed, and I was devastated, but I thought, rather than just putting them in the trash bin, why not just use this and put them back together all broken? So I did, and they were more beautiful and interesting than when they weren’t broken. . . . And they sold immediately.”

Geyer says he likes not having any control over how the fragmented works come out but noted that he throws away probably 70% of the glass he works with.

Not all of Geyer’s works are broken, however. Some, such as “Double Jeopardy,” which has two thin, ceiling-high panes of fan-blown moving and bendable glass, only appear as if they are about to break.

“I like danger and risk,” says Geyer, who also uses art-historical references in his work. One such piece is “Floating Red Square on Fragment,” in which a streaked red clay image is painted onto broken glass. Geyer did the work, he says, as a nod to three of his favorite artists: Marcel Duchamp (who used broken glass) and Josef Albers and Kazimir Malevich (both of whom incorporated squares in their works).

Works by George Geyer are on view through Nov. 4 at the Works Gallery South in Crystal Court, 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa. Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Fridays; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays; 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays. Information: (714) 979-6757.