Monumental Harry Bertoia Silver Necklace, Bertoia Catalogue Raisonne D.JE.49

Extremely rare combination pendant attached to custom-made chain by Harry Bertoia in sterling silver, containing one Lapis Lazuli and one Coral. This piece comes from a private collection. Provenance will accompany the piece. The work has been added to the Harry Bertoia Catalogue Raisonné and assigned the following catalogue raisonné number: D.JE.78. Although associated with Mid-Century Modern furniture, Harry Bertoia was originally a jewelry designer who used both sterling silver, precious stones and gem stones. The pendant measures: 1.25" long x 1" wide. The necklace measures: 11" length with a measurement of 22" overall length. The chain and closure are all handcrafted and in his unique design. Lapis Lazuli measures 20mm round supported by one 6 mm red coral. Total weight is 33 grams. The following is from Beverly H. Twitchell, PhD, author of Bertoia: The Metalworker, London: Phaidon, 2019. She provides a very informative critique of Bertoia and his jewelry. Wearable Art an Important Design for a Necklace “Before Harry Bertoia enrolled at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1937 he had already mastered traditional jewelers’ techniques, but his engagement with Modernism led him to invent and use more direct methods. Instead of precious metals and gems, Bertoia made jewelry that appealed through its design, craftsmanship and the nature of its materials. That approach would make Bertoia a direct predecessor of the American Studio Crafts movement. So complex and cumulative are human perception and memory that we often do not know from where our own ideas come and without firm evidence, it is impossible to think we can establish the origins of an artist’s ideas. While his jewelry is entirely modern, chokers with multiple small pendants had come from ancient Mediterranean cultures: Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece and Italy, even from Europe and America at the turn of the last century. Did Bertoia see works in books, journals or at the Detroit Institute of Arts that resonated with him or did he invent this on his own, as he would so many other forms? Bertoia found inspiration in nature from an early age on a small farm in Italy and later in Cranbrook’s woods, on the beaches of southern California and in the fields near his home in eastern Pennsylvania where he lived after 1950. The fluidity and motion of the his jewelry characterize much of his art. In that spirit, too, he made jewelry that suited human anatomy and was animated by its wearer’s movement. Bertoia had the instincts of an engineer, as the intricacy of the present lot’s clasp and overall construction of the jewelry demonstrates. Large jewelry by Bertoia is very rare. A delight to the eye, and like all of Bertoia’s work it is timeless.” Harry Bertoia (1915 – 1978) was an Italian-born American artist, jewelry creator and modern furniture designer. He was born in San Lorenzo d-Arzene, Pordenone, Italy. At age 15 he moved to Detroit, Michigan to live with his older brother, Oreste. He quickly learned English and the bus schedule and enrolled in Cass Tech High School in Detroit (1930-1936) where he studied art and design and learned the skill of handmade jewelry making. At that time, there were three jewelry and metals teachers Louise Green...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY The monumental "Lynx", the snarling cat, was modeled by Royal Copenhagen artist Knud Kyhn, and created ca. 1950. It’s a monumental piece and remarkably well-preserved with an expressive snarl. The figure is marked by Royal Copenhagen Denmark as shown and numbered 2487. It is in excellent condition with no damage. Knud Kyhn (1880-1969) was a very productive artist who throughout his life created works of art that are still valued all over the world. In Denmark, he is especially known for his many animal figurines, which he created through his many years of service at Royal Copenhagen. He worked for the Royal Porcelain Factory from 1903 - 1910, 1924 - 1932 and 1936 - 1967, interrupted only by a period of work for Herman A. Kahler in Naestved in the early 1920s and at Bing & Grondahl 1908 - 1915 and 1933 - 1935. He was a Danish painter, draftsman and ceramic sculptor. He was the nephew of the landscape painter, Vilhelm Kahn, and was educated at the Kunstakademiet and Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler in 1904. He worked for the Royal Porcelain Factory, and a period with Herman Kahler in Naestved. He continued the tradition from the Fynbos and focused on animals and their movements as well as on the play of light in paintings...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY Bertoia Diamond Chairs, White, Set of Two, Welded & Painted Steel. They are as elegant, strong and functional as when they were manufactured. The chairs will add a touch of class to any setting. Harry Bertoia's career began in the 1930s as a student at Cranbrook Academy of Art where he re-established the metal-working studio and later became head of the department before the school closed during WWII due to wartime restrictions on materials in 1943. During the war, Bertoia moved to California and is credited with developing new techniques for molding plywood with Charles and Ray Eames also from Cranbrook. Harry Bertoia is one of the many well-known artists and designers who attended The Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, The school & buildings were designed by architect and faculty member, Eliel Saarinen who collaborated with Charles and Ray Eames on chair and furniture design. It is the country’s top ranked, graduate-only program in architecture, design and fine art. Each year, just 75 students are invited to study and live on the landmark Saarinen-designed campus which features: private studios, state-of-the art workshops, the renowned Cranbrook Art Museum and 300 acres of forests, lakes and streams, all a short drive from the city of Detroit. The focus at Cranbrook is on studio practice in one of ten disciplines including Architecture, 2D and 3D Design, Ceramics, Fiber, Metalsmithing, Painting, Photography, Print Media, and Sculpture. The program is anchored by celebrated Artists- and Designers-in-Residence, one for each discipline, all of whom live and practice on campus alongside the graduate students. Numerous creative artists who are alumni of Cranbrook include: Florence Knoll, Jack Lenor Larsen, Donald Lipski, Duane Hanson, Nick Cave, Hani Rashid, George Nelson, Urban Jupena (Nationally recognized fiber artist), Artis Lane (the first African-American artist to have her sculpture, "Sojourner Truth," commissioned for the Emancipation Hall in the Capital Visitor Center in Washington DC), Cory Puhlman (televised Pastry Chef extraordinaire), Thom O’Connor (Lithographs), Paul Evans (Brutalist-inspired sculpted metal furnishings), Eugene Caples (small bronze images/abstract), Morris Brose (Bronze Sculptures), Herb Babcock (blown glass), Larry Butcher (mixed media), Lauren Anais Hussey (Abstract), Andrea Eis (film, photography), Lilian Swann Saarinen (Sculpture), Douglas Semivan...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY This set of eight side chairs & four red cushions are as elegant, strong and functional as when they were manufactured. The colors are bright and the cushions are in very good condition. The chairs will add a touch of class to any setting. Harry Bertoia's career began in the 1930s as a student at Cranbrook Academy of Art where he re-established the metal-working studio and later became head of the department before the school closed during WWII due to wartime restrictions on materials in 1943. During the war, Bertoia moved to California and is credited with developing new techniques for molding plywood with Charles and Ray Eames also from Cranbrook. Harry Bertoia is one of the many well-known artists and designers who attended The Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, The school & buildings were designed by architect and faculty member, Eliel Saarinen who collaborated with Charles and Ray Eames on chair and furniture design. It is the country’s top ranked, graduate-only program in architecture, design and fine art. Each year, just 75 students are invited to study and live on the landmark Saarinen-designed campus which features: private studios, state-of-the art workshops, the renowned Cranbrook Art Museum and 300 acres of forests, lakes and streams, all a short drive from the city of Detroit. The focus at Cranbrook is on studio practice in one of ten disciplines including Architecture, 2D and 3D Design, Ceramics, Fiber, Metalsmithing, Painting, Photography, Print Media, and Sculpture. The program is anchored by celebrated Artists- and Designers-in-Residence, one for each discipline, all of whom live and practice on campus alongside the graduate students. Numerous creative artists who are alumni of Cranbrook include: Florence Knoll, Jack Lenor Larsen, Donald Lipski, Duane Hanson, Nick Cave, Hani Rashid, George Nelson, Urban Jupena (Nationally recognized fiber artist), Artis Lane (the first African-American artist to have her sculpture, "Sojourner Truth," commissioned for the Emancipation Hall in the Capital Visitor Center in Washington DC), Cory Puhlman (televised Pastry Chef extraordinaire), Thom O’Connor (Lithographs), Paul Evans (Brutalist-inspired sculpted metal furnishings), Eugene Caples (small bronze images/abstract), Morris Brose (Bronze Sculptures), Herb Babcock (blown glass), Larry Butcher (mixed media), Lauren Anais Hussey (Abstract), Andrea Eis (film, photography), Lilian Swann Saarinen (Sculpture), Douglas Semivan...

Harry Bertoia style monumental steel spray sculpture. Steel rods splayed in fan shape mounted on a wooden square base.

American Mid-century artist Harry Bertoia would spend his daylight hours working on the monumental public projects for which he is so well known. In the evenings though, after dinner...

American Mid-century artist Harry Bertoia would spend his daylight hours working on the monumental public projects for which he is so well known. In the evenings though, after dinner...

"Untitled" (Bush) Sculpture by Harry Bertoia, circa 1970's made of welded bronze. Harry Bertoia, was an Italian-born American artist, sound art sculptor, an...