1st Sculpture 1963

Editor: This is Michael Bolus' "1st Sculpture," created in 1963. It features these basic geometric forms rendered in metal and what appears to be acrylic. The composition is quite striking. What do you make of it? Curator: Well, seeing those unadorned materials, consider the context. 1963. Post-war. Bolus engages with ideas of production, the readymade... Where do these shapes originate? Are they machine-made, or handcrafted? And that glossy acrylic--a new material then. How does it relate to traditional sculptural materials? Editor: So, you're saying the choice of materials speaks to the socio-economic conditions of the time? Curator: Precisely. Look at the surface finish – smooth, almost industrial. The work isn't necessarily about aesthetics in a conventional sense, but about drawing attention to the raw components of our manufactured world. Even the way it sits directly on the floor is significant. Editor: Right, like it’s deconstructing sculpture itself. The elevated pedestal is gone! What does this accessibility communicate to you? Curator: The work questions not just what art is made of, but how it's presented, consumed. Think about the labor involved—the crafting, the welding. It encourages us to see art less as a precious object and more as a product of specific processes and resources. How do you feel these artistic approaches translate to today? Editor: That's a great point, it's hard not to view any piece as divorced from its material origins. This definitely changes my perspective on minimalism! Curator: It’s been valuable to examine it through this materialist lens. It enriches the appreciation of both its time, and our own.