Wendy Ross
Born 1946, Washington, DC
Works in Bethesda, MD
Andraecium III, 1998, welded and woven steel, powder coat, 25’ x 7’ x 7’, Lent by the Artist
In Andraecium III, Wendy Ross strikes a unique balance between the idealized shapes of geometry and the organic structures of nature. On one level, the sculpture is a pristine conic section, formed by horizontal steel bands woven over a vertical steel framework. Seen this way, Andraecium is an elegant, formal, Minimalist sculpture. But its title, which refers to the male sexual organ of plants, implies other, extra-formal associations that derive from the artist’s close study of botany and microscopic organisms. This duality of the architectonic and the botanical is further enriched by the sculpture’s symmetry, precise construction, and shining steel material, which all imply high technology.
