Alloys: American Sculpture and Architecture at Midcentury

Sculpture significantly influenced architecture during a prosperous era of American modern design, as demonstrated by the collaborative efforts of architects like Gordon Bunshaft and Eero Saarinen with sculptors such as Harry Bertoia, Alexander Calder, Richard Lippold, and Isamu Noguchi. These sculptural commissions resulted in iconic spaces like Philip Johnson's Four Seasons Restaurant, Max Abramovitz's Philharmonic Hall, and Pietro Belluschi and Walter Gropiuss Pan Am Building, which would not have been possible without the collaborative efforts of architects and artists. Marin Sullivan argues that the principle of synergy provides an ideal framework to assess this relationship and explores the afterlives of these postwar commissions in the decades since their construction.

Format: Hardback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 22 March 2022
Publisher: Princeton University Press

This fascinating era saw a remarkable exchange of ideas and influences between sculptors and architects, resulting in the creation of site-specific, large-scale sculptures tailored for the highly visible and well-traversed threshold spaces of buildings. Prominent architects like Gordon Bunshaft and Eero Saarinen collaborated with renowned sculptors such as Harry Bertoia, Alexander Calder, Richard Lippold, and Isamu Noguchi to produce these works. The parameters of these spaces, including atriums, lobbies, plazas, and entryways, led to innovative designs such as sculptural walls, ceilings, and screens that embraced new industrial materials and processes while also demonstrating the arts ability to merge with lived architectural spaces.

Marin Sullivan argues that these sculptural commissions represent an alternate history of midcentury American art. She suggests that some of the most notable spaces of the era, such as Philip Johnsons Four Seasons Restaurant in Mies van der Rohes Seagram Building, Max Abramovitzs Philharmonic Hall at Lincoln Center, and Pietro Belluschi and Walter Gropiuss Pan Am Building, would be diminished without the collaborative efforts of architects and artists. At the same time, the artistic creations within these spaces could not exist anywhere else.

Sullivan demonstrates that the principle of synergy provides an ideal framework to assess the profound relationship between sculpture and architecture. She also explores the afterlives of these postwar commissions in the decades since their construction, highlighting their continued impact and influence on the field of architecture and design.

In conclusion, Alloys offers a valuable insight into the interrelationship of architecture and sculpture during a period of remarkable creativity and innovation. Through its examination of the collaborative efforts of architects and sculptors, the book sheds light on the ways in which these two artistic disciplines have shaped and influenced each other, resulting in the creation of some of the most iconic spaces of midcentury American art.

Weight: 1256g
Dimension: 215 x 277 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780691215778