80. ROBERT KLIPPEL
Galerie Gmurzynska in Zrich, one of Europes major private galleries, sees Robert Klippels sculptures as fitting somewhere between those of Kurt Schwitters and Max Ernst. Klippels painted wood assemblage sculpture No. 752 is related to his work No.714, a large major sculpture in the Art Gallery of New South Wales and No. 757 in the National Gallery of Australia. It was made in the same year, shares the same materials, uses the same techniques and is born of the same aesthetic impulse. They have no plinths, pedestals, tripods or legs and sit rather than stand. That is, they rest squarely on flat surfaces and are planted in their surrounding space rather than rise above it. Klippels No. 752 of 1988 is a rare example from his highpoint years.
Menzies Art Brands Note:
Dr. Ken Wach wrote the catalogue for the exhibition Robert Klippel: The American and European Years at Galerie Gmurzynska in Zrich in June 2013 the first Klippel exhibition in Europe for sixty-three years. He also gave the address at the exhibition opening in the Baur au Lac in Zrich. Robert Klippel is internationally represented by Galerie Gmurzynska in Zrich, Switzerland.
Associate Professor Ken Wach
Dip. Art; T.T.T.C.; Fellowship RMIT; MA; PhD.
Emeritus Principal Research Fellow
and Head of the School of Creative Arts
The University of Melbourne