$50,400
USA, 1955 welded copper and bronze with patina 58 w x 17 d x 68 h in (147 x 43 x 173 cm)
This early sculpture is a masterpiece of Bertoia's constructive process that predates the Bush and Willow tree forms developed in the 1960s.
Composed of thousands of wires that have been brazed together, the assemblage takes on aspects of wind-generated movement that is contradicted by the rigidity of the material. Small, linear elements, coupled with green and purple patina make the sculpture appear as an abstract expressionist painting in three dimensions. The scale and flat composition make this form perfectly suited to be used architecturally as a space divider in a room. Firey Circle was exhibited at Staempfli Gallery in New York among other large-scale sculptures that as a group predict the many sculptural forms Bertoia went on to refine over the next two decades.
Exhibited:
Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA
The Bertoia Legacy: Sound and Motion, Moravian College, Bethlehem, PA, November 29, 1990- February 3, 1991, illustrated in cover
Literature:
The World of Bertoia, Schiffer and Bertoia, pg. 91 illustrates this sculpture in an exhibition at Staempfli Gallery, New York, from the 1960s. more
result: $50,400
print
Auctioneer:
Wright Auctions
Date:
2004-10-03
