Meru I 1964

Curator: William Tucker's "Meru I" sprawls before us, a painted steel sculpture residing in the Tate Collections. What strikes you initially? Editor: It feels grounded, earthy. The organic shapes in rusted orange and muted green, they evoke something primal, like tectonic plates shifting or the splayed roots of some ancient tree. Curator: Tucker, born in 1935, was pivotal in British sculpture. He moved away from the figurative, exploring abstract forms that speak to broader cultural and historical narratives. Think about the post-war period and its emphasis on abstraction. Editor: The title "Meru"—it's intriguing. In Hindu and Buddhist cosmology, Mount Meru is the center of the universe, a symbolic axis. Does this sculpture attempt to embody that centrality, that connection between heaven and earth? Curator: Exactly! Tucker's work often seeks to connect with fundamental human experiences and shared mythologies, drawing on a deep understanding of art history and our collective past. Editor: I see it now. This piece echoes not only the personal struggle for meaning but also humanity's universal desire to orient itself within the cosmos. Curator: A powerful statement through deceptively simple forms. Editor: Indeed, a truly grounded monument to the human condition.