David Smith’s XI Books and III Apples stands 7 feet and 9 inches tall and was made of stainless steel in 1959. The shape and look of this piece to me looks very modern for the time that is was made, yet oddly enough it does look like a bunch of two dimensional metallic books and apples assembled together. I agree with the book exactly that this work appears to be an odd but friendly being with no arms. In the photo it stands almost warily in the shade, but in the sun I think it would gleam brightly and look a more vehement. I find this piece most interesting because David Smith was working as a welder while trying to establish himself as an artist, and then when he started to focus on his art he adapted his welding skills to an artful purpose.
Mark di Suvera’s Origins was finished in 2004, it stands 36 feet and 4 inches tall and it is made of painted steel, the preferred material for this contemporary sculptor. The artist makes his sculptures from steel I-veams which are the same kind of girders used in construction. He bolts the elements together in the same fashion as a constructions workers bolt together the steel beams of a building. I think his piece featured in the book, Origins, is also a modern looking piece but instead of friendly it seems more intimidating. I think the black swirls atop the steel arrangement give it some beauty while the rusty orange/red base gives the piece a feel of ferocity and strength.
Some similarities among David Smith’s XI Books and III Apples and Mark di Suvera’s Origins are that they are both made of steel, they are both modern, and they are both set on a grassy hill. David’s Smith’s piece much smaller than Origins, it is very modern for the time that it was made, and is a 2-dimensional structure. Mark di Suvera’s piece is more common in the modern time it was made, it is very, very tall, and it is a 3-dimensional structure that looks nearly the same from every angle.
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