Constellations II
1950/1958
Artists
Description
Walter Gropius commissioned this relief for a dining room in the Harvard Graduate Center's Harkness Commons, which opened in 1950. The tables and chairs soon damaged the lower parts of the relief, prompting Arp to rearrange it in 1958 to a more compact configuration titled Constellations II. Although Arp referred to the work as a relief, it is closer in form and spirit to installation art. In a relief, the design is carved from and fixed to its ground; in Constellations II, 13 of Arp's signature biomorphic shapes executed in American redwood attach directly to the wall. Their installation across two walls surrounds the viewer to create an immersive space.
Provenance
Harvard Law School, transferred; to the Harvard Art Museums, 2017.
Related Artworks
View MoreCarved Wood
ChineseHard-paste porcelain with polychrome enamels and gold
18th centuryGermanWhite jasperware head on blue ground
18th centuryBritishLeaded bronze
1st-3rd century CERomanTerracotta
4th century BCEGreekLimestone, remains of pigment
7th century BCEEgyptianTerracotta with pigment
6th century BCEEtruscanMolded, brownish gray earthenware with cold-painted pigments
6th centuryChineseTerracotta
2nd century BCEPre-Columbian
Mixed media cast on an armature
20th-21st centuryBritishTerracotta
19th centuryItalian?Terracotta
5th century BCEGreek