Definition of Wire Sculpture

WIRE is metal that has been drawn into a long, thin rod or thread. SCULPTURE is art in three-dimensional form. WIRE SCULPTURE is any art made from wire.

What constitutes a "real" wire sculpture? Anything and everything, so long as wire is the material being used. There are no rules, no limits, no boundaries. Just as there are infinite variations in the way an artist may create a pen-and-ink drawing of any subject in any style, there are unlimited opportunities for wire sculptors to explore and innovate. Wire scupture as a medium presents a vast, challenging frontier, wide open for exploration and discovery.

Many follow the path of Alexander Calder, using single strands to create airy, abstract, minimalist essences of people and animals. The more adventurous depart from Calder's style, creating their own distinctive and recognizable forms.

Some wire sculptors enjoy the challenge of restricting themselves to a single continuous strand. Others combine multiple strands, from a few to hundreds or even thousands of individual wires. Textile techniques ordinarily associated with soft fibers may be adapted to wire: knitting, crocheting, weaving, braiding, twisting, wrapping, lace-making, sprang, and even basketry methods lend texture, strength and visual excitement to wire sculpture.

Wire sculptures can be made from man-made meshes, from lightweight chicken wire and grid-type field fencing to heavy gauge grating. It can be bent and formed with bare hands, with pliers and jigs, with hammers and molds. Once again, there are no rules, no limits, no restrictions. It may be hot-formed, joined to itself by soldering or welding, or cold-formed, joined to itself by whatever method best suits the individual wire sculptor.

Wire sculpture can be created in gold, silver and other fine metals. "Novelty wire" such as color-coated electric and phone wire, and nitonol "memory wire" offer additional potential. Wire sculpture designed with motion as an element, whether from hinge mechanisms, motor elements, etc, is known as "kinetic wire sculpture". Every time a wire sculptor picks up a previously unapplied wire, or uses in it a new way, another form of wire sculpture has been invented - some adventurous souls even use barbed wire to make monumental forms. It is this exciting spirit of innovation which marks wire sculpture as a truly remarkable art form.

Wire sculpture may be abstract or representational, decorative or functional. Wire furniture, utensils, baskets and decorative screens are one possibility; wire forms of humans and animals can serve as topiary frames, or free-standing garden and landscape art. Wire sculpture jewelers use precious metals to make pendants, rings, necklaces, tiaras, and other wearable art.

As a design element, wire sculpture is immensely versatile. It casts fascinating shadows, which shift continually with changes in weather and sunlight. It can be visually open and airy, or dense and full of gravity - some wire sculpture conveys a balance of both. For difficult spaces, where the mass of a conventional metal sculpture would oppressively dominate an area, wire sculpture is an ideal solution; it balances energy, mass, line and space, combining lightness and gravity to full advantage.

You can find more about Elizabeth Berrien and her work at http://www.wirelady.com