WSP.2002.000

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Details

ID Number

WSP.2002.000

Category

Communication Artifact

Sub-category

Art

Item Name

sculpture

Maker

Davies, Hayden

Title

Composition with Five Elements

Date

1980

Materials

Painted break formed aluminum

Measurements

213.4 x 671.0 x 244.0 cm

Description

Five angular slices of yellow formed aluminum intersect to create a horizontal, hard edge abstraction; measures 7'5" in height.

History

Composition with Five Elements developed from a maquette entitled Cromlech. The original title is derived from the cromlechs—megalithic stone monuments—found in Davies’ native Wales and surrounding Britain, the most famous of which is Stonehenge. An association with these ancient British monuments has been a recurring theme in Davies’ sculptures for years, but according to the sculptor this relationship is purely formal. Composition with Five Elements demonstrates Davies’ fascination with the irregular spaces created between large forms and the way in which they can “alter with even a slight change in viewpoint.” As the viewer walks around the sculpture, simple shapes suspended in space will shrink, grow, metamorphose and vanish. Davies has work in the permanent collections of Galleria Nazionale D'Arte Moderna e Contemporenea in Rome, Museo d'Arte Moderna in Venice and the Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique in Brussels. He is considered to be one of Canada’s leading contemporary constructivists. His steel and wood sculptures stand outside the Bell Canada Centre in Toronto, the provincial offices in Windsor and the Art Centre in Burlington, Ont. Constructed at Kaiser Aluminum in 1980. Davies purchased the work back from the company in the mid 80’s for the original cost. An original maquette for this work is held in the collection of the Galleria Nazionale d’Art Moderna, Rome. In the Spring of 2014 the Windsor Star had a "Sculpture Park Showdown" contest similar to the bracket challenge for NCAA March Madness. There were 5 rounds in total. Composition with Five Elements was out after the first round.

Collection Name

Windsor Sculpture Park