Arts Bombast: Ruth Asawa
The first time I saw Ruth Asawa‘s work was about a week after I moved from New Mexico to San Francisco, in a hallway (not a gallery) at the de Young. I remember noticing the intricate shadows that the pieces produced, and how the work made me totally reconsider my attitude towards sculpture, especially the role of curatorial choice in displaying sculpture.
Asawa passed away earlier this month (regular readers know how obsessed I am with memorializing dead artists on this blog), and I figured everyone would appreciate some of my favorite images of the artist and her work. Two words that Asawa’s sculpture brings to mind are identifiers I’ve always had complex relationships with: feminine and Californian. They come through brilliantly in her work. RIP.
Dig it? Check out another badass-mid-century-Japanese-lady-artist.
Ribbon Around A Bomb 
I like how insubstantial they look, like jellyfish with their insides hollowed out. Kind of ethereal, but not in the usual sort of way. It must have been interesting to see one casting a shadow. The trees are amazing, too.