January 1982. Yellow granite, steel. Dimensions: 72 × 80 × 92 in (183 × 203 × 234 cm). Private Collection.
Tripod with Umbilical marks a pivotal moment in my work, when I began breaking away from the tightly formulated tensegrity, or Brute Series, that had occupied me through the late 1970s and early 1980s. The three long granite elements are still joined through an elaborate system of interlocking forged-steel bars, retaining the earlier emphasis on gravity, structural interdependence, and visible assembly. Yet the steel begins to take on a new role. Most notably, a long curved bar extends freely into space rather than serving a purely structural function—what I described at the time as “my flag going up” to signal that I was beginning to break away.
The title identifies this projecting element as an “umbilical”—a lifeline connecting where I had been with where the work was heading. Its animated, almost gestural line introduces an expressive element beyond the self-referential “sculpture about sculpture” concerns of the Brute Series. In this sense, Tripod with Umbilical stands directly on the threshold between two periods: still rooted in the structural vocabulary of my earlier work, but beginning to open toward a more image-driven, associative, and metaphorical language. This transition would become more explicit later in 1982 with works such as Beam Torque and In the Clear.
January 1982. Yellow granite, steel. Dimensions: 72 × 80 × 92 in (183 × 203 × 234 cm). Private Collection.
Tripod with Umbilical marks a pivotal moment in my work, when I began breaking away from the tightly formulated tensegrity, or Brute Series, that had occupied me through the late 1970s and early 1980s. The three long granite elements are still joined through an elaborate system of interlocking forged-steel bars, retaining the earlier emphasis on gravity, structural interdependence, and visible assembly. Yet the steel begins to take on a new role. Most notably, a long curved bar extends freely into space rather than serving a purely structural function—what I described at the time as “my flag going up” to signal that I was beginning to break away.
The title identifies this projecting element as an “umbilical”—a lifeline connecting where I had been with where the work was heading. Its animated, almost gestural line introduces an expressive element beyond the self-referential “sculpture about sculpture” concerns of the Brute Series. In this sense, Tripod with Umbilical stands directly on the threshold between two periods: still rooted in the structural vocabulary of my earlier work, but beginning to open toward a more image-driven, associative, and metaphorical language. This transition would become more explicit later in 1982 with works such as Beam Torque and In the Clear.
forged steel holding granite
forged steel
forged steel "umbilical"
