artist
Born in Detroit in 1923, Jerome Kirk served in WWII and received a degree in mechanical engineering from MIT in 1951. Impressed by the work of Alexander Calder, Kirk’s early work bore the influence of early kinetic art however he soon developed a style of his own. Kirk’s dedication to his craft has set new standards for sculpture, specifically kinetic sculpture.
Description
The Kinetic Composition piece we have, made in 1974 has a complex series of semi-spheres which move with eloquence. Kirk would share that his use of color comes from his admiring the work of Alexander Calder and incorporating color into his work as well and to add extra dimension between different working parts. Often compositions such as this one are experiments that interest the sculptor where they wonder “if I do this, how do I get it to move like that?”. Often they are problem solving and challenging their own brains as to what they can do and how to make it work.
This particular composition boasts intricate arcing movement of the black linear forms which is more complex and beautiful to watch than some of his other works.
provenance
Peter Clarke, Maine
