Harry Bertoia

Three Sound Sculpture

Inscribed with artist's number on base

Inscribed with artist's number on base

Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Val Bertoia (born 1949) Val Bertoia was born in Santa Monica, California in 1949. In the 1950s, his family moved from Cali...

Val Bertoia (b. 1949) Val Bertoia was born in Santa Monica, California in 1949 to the artist, Harry Bertoia and his wife, Brigitta Valentiner. The family relocated to Pennsylvania in the 1950s where Bertoia has lived and worked since. In the1960s, Bertoia attended the Indiana Institute of Technology in Fort Wayne, Indiana. After his release from the US Army in Fort Dix, NJ, Bertoia returned to Pennsylvania and began to work at Bertoia Studio with his father. Val worked extensively with his father from 1972 to 1978. The two primarily worked on his father’s Sound Sculpture...

Harry Bertoia, Untitled (Abstraction), monotype, c. 1960, a unique impression. Signed 'HB' in pencil, lower right sheet corner, verso. Inscribed '1852' (the artist’s inventory number) in pencil, lower right sheet corner, recto. A superb, painterly impression, on cream wove Japan paper, the full sheet, in excellent condition. Unmatted, unframed. Sheet size 12 x 39 inches (30 x 99 cm). Provenance: Val Bertoia; Private Collection; Rago Auctions, Lambertville, NJ. Literature: 'Harry Bertoia: Monoprints,' Nancy N. Schiffer, Schiffer Publishing LTD, 2011; pg. 253. This work is included in the Harry Bertoia Foundation digital resource, Harry Bertoia Catalogue Raisonné, number TD.MO.1584. ABOUT THE ARTIST Harry Bertoia (1915-1978) was a visionary Italian-American artist, sculptor, and designer. Born in San Lorenzo, Italy, Bertoia immigrated to the United States with his family at age fifteen, settling in Detroit, Michigan. From an early age, Bertoia demonstrated a keen interest in art and design, studying painting and drawing at the Cass Technical High School in Detroit. Later, he attended the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he studied under renowned designers Eliel Saarinen and Charles Eames. At Cranbrook, Bertoia first began to explore the possibilities of working with metal, a medium that would come to define his artistic career. In the 1940s, Bertoia moved to California to work for Charles and Ray Eames, contributing to the development of innovative molded plywood furniture. However, his experimentation with metal wire sculpture would ultimately catapult him to international acclaim. Bertoia's iconic "Sonambient" sculptures, consisting of delicate metal rods arranged in various configurations, created ethereal sounds when touched or moved, transforming the act of sculpture into a multisensory experience. Bertoia's talent and innovation caught the attention of Florence Knoll, the founder of Knoll Associates, a leading furniture design company. In 1950, Bertoia began collaborating with Knoll, producing a series of iconic wire chairs that became emblematic of mid-century modern design. His "Diamond Chair," with its geometric form and airy construction, remains a classic of modern furniture design. Bertoia continued to explore sculpture as a means of artistic expression, experimenting with new forms and materials. His work was characterized by organicism and fluidity, with forms that evoked natural phenomena such as waves, leaves, and clouds. A decade before Harry Bertoia began creating three-dimensional sculpture, he dedicated his creative efforts to producing experimental prints at the Cranbrook Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, pursuing a passion that would continue for the rest of his life. With these spontaneous works, he worked intuitively, testing different tools and techniques to achieve his desired effects. Rather than using a traditional mechanical pressing process, he would apply ink to a glass or smooth Masonite plate with a sheet of paper laid directly on top. Then, tools such as brayers, dog hair brushes, styluses, and different parts of his hands were employed to draw or “press” the images on the back of the sheet. Rice paper was typically used due to its semi-translucent nature, offering Bertoia limited visibility of the effects of his experimentation, but ultimately, the unpredictable nature of the process was an integral aspect of the results, which never ceased to delight him. Each work was a singular composition with abstract imagery ranging from linear, structural compositions to fantastic surrealistic forms to poetic tonal landscapes. He received little input from other artists, developing his unique vision with rare purity and a deep personal resonance. From his first year of printmaking in 1940, Bertoia quickly amassed an extensive collection of unique works. The compositions were strongly tied to the non-objective movement, which, while popular in Europe, was still in its nascent stages in the US. There were few proponents of this new art form to be found in the 1940s, and it was Hilla Rebay, then Director of the Guggenheim Museum of Non-Objective Art, who gave Bertoia the encouragement and promotion he needed. In 1943, Bertoia sent approximately 100 monotypes to Rebay for review. After receiving the prints, she responded with a surprising offer to buy them all. Rebay then began including them in the museum’s exhibitions. The Guggenheim shows succeeded in putting Bertoia’s name out into the world. He began exhibiting his works regularly at the Neierndorf Gallery in New York and was provided a stipend to ensure a steady supply of prints until Karl Neierndorf died in 1947. By the 1950s...

Italian-born American artist Harry Bertoia (1915-1978), is a noted sculptor and modern furniture designer. He is arguably one of the most successful creative forces hired by Florence...

Monotype by Harry Bertoia, initialed and numbered 1860 on rice paper set mounted in oiled walnut frame. From the Bertoia Family collection. A beautiful rendering of his sculptures id...

"Untitled (Sounding Sculpture)" is a Post-War abstract sculpture created by Harry Bertoia in circa 1970. This artwork is 48 x 15.75 x 8 inches and weighs 45 lbs. Bertoia was enthra...