William Black (British, 20th Century) Abstract Sculpture, Patinated Copper Alloy, Signed

Crafted from copper and rigid wire, the metal is patinated a vibrant green verdigris, with areas of uneven texture. The sculpture has aged over the years, giving it added character, as the artist originally envisaged. Signed on the base and in good vintage condition, this item is dated to the late 1960s.

Dimensions: 21cm length / 6cm width / 31cm height.

N.B. Black formerly worked as an architect before moving to St Ives in the late 1950’s in order to pursue a career as a self-taught artist and sculptor. During this time, the abstract avant-garde movement was being developed locally, and Black became loosely associated with this ‘St Ives Group’. He knew artists such as Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson and was a close friend of the artist John Tunnard, who also worked on the fringes of the St Ives Group. Tunnard, Hepworth, Nicholson and Naum Gabo are considered to have influenced Black’s work.

Black’s metal sculptures are abstract in form and often incorporate pieces of copper which sometimes move and swing, giving them a mobile quality. Black’s works are typified by his use of disparate and dislocated shapes assembled to form a new and cohesive whole.