$86,100
Harry Bertoia (American, 1915-1978) Maquette for the MIT Kresge Chapel Altar Screen, c. 1950-1955 Unsigned. Welded, painted, and gilt metal, 24 x 9 3/4 x 4 5/8 in. (61.0 x 24.8 x 11.7 cm), mounted to a hardwood base. Condition: Very minor oxidation, minor surface grime. Provenance: Collection of Robert Bradford Newman (1917-1983), professor of architectural acoustics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Architecture and the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and principal of Bolt, Beranek and Newman Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts. The present work is a maquette for one of the earliest commissioned site-specific architectural sculptures created by Bertoia for his friend and Cranbrook colleague, Eero Saarinen. The Kresge Chapel at MIT was completed by Eero Saarinen and Associates in 1955, and a key feature of the Chapel's design is an oculus window which illuminates an otherwise windowless and cylindrical building. Saarinen commissioned Bertoia to create a monumental work to complement this direct and elevating light source, befitting a sacred space. Bertoia created a floor-to-ceiling altar screen of vertical rods and gilt metal plates, which gleam and dematerialize in natural and electric light. The Kresge Auditorium and Chapel would not have their unconventional forms without the collaboration of the acoustical engineering firm of Bolt, Beranek and Newman. The firm comprised a physicist, electrical engineer, and architect, respectively. Newman was the f Read more…
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2014-02-07
