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Artist or Maker: George Rickey (1907-2002)
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Provenance: Mr. Richard Koch, New Orleans
New Orleans Museum of Art, gift from the above
Acquired from the above by the present owner
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Exhibited: Washington, D.C., The Corcoran Gallery of Art, George Rickey: Sixteen Years of Kinetic Sculpture, September-November 1996, p. 16 (illustrated).
New Orleans, Tulane University, Newcomb College, George Rickey, New Orleans Plus 30, October-November 1983.
New York, Maxwell Davidson Gallery, George Rickey Retrospective, October-November 2004, n.p., (illustrated).
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Literature: N. Rosenthal, George Rickey, New York, 1977, p. 121, pl. 96 (illustrated).
M. Davidson III, George Rickey: The Early Works, Atglen, 2004, p. 174 (illustrated).
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Notes: George Rickey is one of the only artists, who can be considered a legitimate heir to the radical invention of Alexander Calder's kinetic sculptures. Over a fifty-year career, Rickey created a magical body of work that used brilliant engineering and the simplicity of clear design to bring movement, balance and lightness to a medium normally known for its solid density.
Max Davidson III, Rickey's friend and dealer, writes that whereas "Calder sought [in his mobiles] spatial relationships brought about by randomness, Rickey sought randomness brought by strict order." (M. Davidson III, George Rickey The Early Works, 2004, p.17). As such he sees Calder as emerging from Surrealism, while Rickey seems more in line with Constructivists such as Naum Gabo and Pevsner, both of whom were his friends.
Lumina I is the largest and most important early sculpture to come to auction. Rickey made very few "Lumina" sculptures and all but two were small-scaled table works. The "Lumina" components were created by spot-welding small strips of polished stainless steel to form an openwork triangular cage, which were then attached on top of each other to make a shiny column of intricate detail. Each "Lumina" spins gently on its own axis in the breeze. "It is motion created by motion, and it produces a dramatic effect - not only does the entire tower sway but the "Lumina" spin freely, reflecting light in all directions." (ibid, p.174).
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