1982. Granite, forged steel. Dimensions: 13 × 24 × 15 in (33 × 61 × 38 cm).
Tripod with Umbilical II is a table-top variation on the “umbilical” theme and comes from a pivotal period when I was beginning to break away from the tightly formulated tensegrity, or Brute Series. The granite elements remain joined by 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 in the long, curved bar that extends freely into the table surface and on into space rather than serving a purely structural function.
The projecting “umbilical” acts as a lifeline or symbolic connection between where my work had been and where it was heading. Its gestural line moves beyond the self-referential “sculpture about sculpture” concerns of the Brute Series toward a more expressive, associative, and metaphorical language that would emerge more fully later in 1982.
1982. Granite, forged steel. Dimensions: 13 × 24 × 15 in (33 × 61 × 38 cm).
Tripod with Umbilical II is a table-top variation on the “umbilical” theme and comes from a pivotal period when I was beginning to break away from the tightly formulated tensegrity, or Brute Series. The granite elements remain joined by 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 in the long, curved bar that extends freely into the table surface and on into space rather than serving a purely structural function.
The projecting “umbilical” acts as a lifeline or symbolic connection between where my work had been and where it was heading. Its gestural line moves beyond the self-referential “sculpture about sculpture” concerns of the Brute Series toward a more expressive, associative, and metaphorical language that would emerge more fully later in 1982.
