Lot Essay
In 1927, Isamu Noguchi was awarded a fellowship in Paris from the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation. Once there, he was fortunate enough to be introduced to Contsantin Brancusi, and soon after went to work in the artist's studio. 'From Brancusi his own natural respect for wood and stone and metal was rigidly reinforced and he developed a greater determination to be true to the material and use it in such a way that its natural properties and character would be enhanced' (J. Gordon, Isamu Noguchi, New York 1968, p. 8).
Employing the ideas and methods instilled by Brancusi, Noguchi began a number of free-standing scupltures in Italy in 1962. Derived from a wood original the artist had carved in the United States, Solitude is one of these works. When Noguchi described Solitude, he has said, 'The light of this sculpture comes from an ephemeral lightness, a delicacy, as with balsawood. Bronze adds a sense of weight, which is also to be valued' (ibid, p. 90).
The composition Noguchi created in Solitude recalls figurative references. Nancy Grove's description of this piece brings it to life as if it were a human form. 'Solitude is squarely capped and footed (ie., self-contained/isolated). Two "arms" dangle freely from the top element; they clang against each other suggesting, to one critic, "the ticking of a cosmic clock." Noguchi has compared the fixed elements of the other weightless pieces to "arrested pendulums," which he associated with his "preoccupation with time"' (N. Grove, Isamu Noguchi: A Study of the Sculpture, Ann Arbor 1983, p. 101).
Employing the ideas and methods instilled by Brancusi, Noguchi began a number of free-standing scupltures in Italy in 1962. Derived from a wood original the artist had carved in the United States, Solitude is one of these works. When Noguchi described Solitude, he has said, 'The light of this sculpture comes from an ephemeral lightness, a delicacy, as with balsawood. Bronze adds a sense of weight, which is also to be valued' (ibid, p. 90).
The composition Noguchi created in Solitude recalls figurative references. Nancy Grove's description of this piece brings it to life as if it were a human form. 'Solitude is squarely capped and footed (ie., self-contained/isolated). Two "arms" dangle freely from the top element; they clang against each other suggesting, to one critic, "the ticking of a cosmic clock." Noguchi has compared the fixed elements of the other weightless pieces to "arrested pendulums," which he associated with his "preoccupation with time"' (N. Grove, Isamu Noguchi: A Study of the Sculpture, Ann Arbor 1983, p. 101).