Reconstruction.

Rodchenko Spatial construction Circle within a circle No. 9 (Circle in a Circle)

From the second series of spatial constructions “Surfaces that reflect light” (series of "Light-Reflecting Surfaces" [Ploskosti otrazhaiushchie svet]) 1920-1921

These constructions are in response to a request to make the Spatial Construction’s of Alexandre Rodchenko available to the public and to allow for an understanding of how pure his work was.

From 1918 through 1921, Rodchenko made three series of Spatial Constructions, each comprised of six works. Regrettably, most of them have long been known only through photographs made at the time and through Rodchenko's own sketches on a page of his notebook. The sole surviving work is Spatial Construction no. 12 of about 1920.

Rodchenko imposed a simple logic upon his method of construction. Made of light plywood, each work was restricted to a single geometric shape, cut in concentric bands of regular width and painted silver to reflect the light. When flat, each sculpture was a unitary form: an oval, a circle, a triangle, a square, a hexagon, and an octagon. Suspended from the ceiling instead of placed on a traditional pedestal, the sculpture fanned out into space, articulating a complex volume whose shadow was still more complex and variable.

One of the most versatile Constructivist and Productivist artists to emerge after the Russian Revolution, Aleksandr Rodchenko worked as a painter, graphic designer, photographer, photomontageist, architectural designer, and sculptor. He was alternately influenced by Suprematism, Productivism, Dada, Constructivism, Abstraction, and Abstract Expressionism--working in different modes throughout his artistic life.

Dimensions
diameter 8" (20 cm)


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