- 251
HARRY BERTOIA | "Cloud" Sculpture
Estimate
60,000 - 80,000 USD
Sold
bidding is closed
Description
- Harry Bertoia
- "Cloud" Sculpture
- melt-coated brass, steel
- 5 1/2 x 15 1/2 x 42 in. (14 x 39.4 x 106.7 cm)
- circa 1957
Provenance
The Collection of the artist, circa 1957
Don Hatch Galleria, Caracas, Venezuela, 1958
Private Collection, Caracas, Venezuela, early 1960s
Thence by descent to the present owner
Don Hatch Galleria, Caracas, Venezuela, 1958
Private Collection, Caracas, Venezuela, early 1960s
Thence by descent to the present owner
Exhibited
Don Hatch Gallery, Caracas, Venezuela, May 1958 (no. 21)
Nancy N. Schiffer and Val O. Bertoia, The World of Bertoia, Atglen, PA, 2003, p. 88
Nancy N. Schiffer and Val O. Bertoia, The World of Bertoia, Atglen, PA, 2003, p. 88
Literature
June Kompass Nelson, Harry Bertoia Sculptor, Detroit, 1970, pl. 24 (for the model)
Nancy N. Schiffer and Val O. Bertoia, The World of Bertoia, Atglen, PA, 2003, p. 88 (for the model)
Nancy N. Schiffer and Val O. Bertoia, The World of Bertoia, Atglen, PA, 2003, p. 88 (for the model)
Catalogue Note
This lot is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from the Harry Bertoia Foundation, Bozeman, Montana.
Nature was not only Harry Bertoia’s greatest inspiration and muse, it played an active role in the presentation of his work. He saw no contradiction between the hardness of metal, his preferred medium, and the lushness of the natural world. By displaying many of his sculptures outdoors, his abstract, metallic interpretations of nature became integrated with the landscape through their interaction with the elements. In the present sculpture, Bertoia welded together a mass of tiny individual metal pieces which culminate in a cloud form. The overall effect is incredibly light and delicate, like mist being carried on a soft breeze—a testament to Bertoia’s incredible technical ability. Bertoia retained this sculpture in his personal collection and installed it floating over a small pond on his property in the Pennsylvania countryside, underscoring his affection for this particular work.
Nature was not only Harry Bertoia’s greatest inspiration and muse, it played an active role in the presentation of his work. He saw no contradiction between the hardness of metal, his preferred medium, and the lushness of the natural world. By displaying many of his sculptures outdoors, his abstract, metallic interpretations of nature became integrated with the landscape through their interaction with the elements. In the present sculpture, Bertoia welded together a mass of tiny individual metal pieces which culminate in a cloud form. The overall effect is incredibly light and delicate, like mist being carried on a soft breeze—a testament to Bertoia’s incredible technical ability. Bertoia retained this sculpture in his personal collection and installed it floating over a small pond on his property in the Pennsylvania countryside, underscoring his affection for this particular work.