George Rickey(1907-2002)
Rickey grew up in Helensburgh, Scotland, and attended Glenalmond College there. He studied at Oxford from 1926 to 1929. He then moved to Paris, where he continued his studies in 1929 and 1930. The first mobiles were created in 1945. He found inspiration for this in the works of the American engineer and sculptor Alexander Calder. In 1968 and 1969, Rickey was a scholarship holder of the German Academic Exchange Service West Berlin. In 1972 he received the Fine Arts Award from the American Institute of Architects. In 1974 he joined the American Institute of Arts and Letters. In 1986 he received the New York State Governor's Award in Albany. The following year he was accepted into the Academy of Arts in Berlin. For his art he used the laws of nature or gravity and integrated them into his work of art as an elementary part. With his mobiles, Rickey revealed nature time. He copied the movement from nature.
In this sense, the artist has perfected the kinetic works of art. Later, George Rickey created his kinetic works of art in stainless steel elements. He realized the mobiles as hanging and standing works. The principle of pendulum movement, which occurs without a motor, was transferred to the surrounding space. George Rickey gave his mobiles names like "Two Lines In," "Two Lines Out," or "Six Horizontal Lines." In doing so, they refer to the simple construction, which was implemented with scientific precision. The movable sculpture entitled "One up, one down oblique" was created in 1975. The kinetic mobile, which is only 60 centimeters high, also works without motor power. With this concept, George Rickey differs considerably from the movement games of the French artist Marcel Duchamp or the Swiss kinetic sculptor Jean Tinguely. They built auxiliary motors into their fragile mobiles, which helped the works of art move.
George Rickey took part in the documenta exhibition in Kassel several times. Many of his free sculptures are distributed worldwide. They are often located very close to buildings or are attached to buildings themselves. In doing so, you make a significant contribution to the idea of "art in architecture". Rickey's mobiles in urban spaces shape the image of a city. A free sculpture has been standing on the grounds of the Fulda University of Applied Sciences for 20 years. Previously it was part of the exhibition "Spielraum - Raumspiele" in front of the Alte Oper in Frankfurt/M. The five-meter-high monumental work in the entrance area of the campus consists of asymmetrically attached, needle-like metal arms. They are powered solely by the power of the wind without any motor assistance. Depending on the wind direction, the arms of the free plastic also rotate in different directions. The movement expresses the theme of the artistic work.
A kinetic sculpture by George Rickes also adorns the Hessischer Rundfunk broadcasting building in Frankfurt am Main. It consists of three stainless steel rods. You seem to be in a weightless state of suspension. The wind causes them to move and create ever new constellations. In 2001 there was a group exhibition entitled "Summer Rooms" in the Pels-Leusden gallery in Berlin, which also included works by Rickey. He spent his last years in California near Santa Barbara and in Saint Paul.
In this sense, the artist has perfected the kinetic works of art. Later, George Rickey created his kinetic works of art in stainless steel elements. He realized the mobiles as hanging and standing works. The principle of pendulum movement, which occurs without a motor, was transferred to the surrounding space. George Rickey gave his mobiles names like "Two Lines In," "Two Lines Out," or "Six Horizontal Lines." In doing so, they refer to the simple construction, which was implemented with scientific precision. The movable sculpture entitled "One up, one down oblique" was created in 1975. The kinetic mobile, which is only 60 centimeters high, also works without motor power. With this concept, George Rickey differs considerably from the movement games of the French artist Marcel Duchamp or the Swiss kinetic sculptor Jean Tinguely. They built auxiliary motors into their fragile mobiles, which helped the works of art move.
George Rickey took part in the documenta exhibition in Kassel several times. Many of his free sculptures are distributed worldwide. They are often located very close to buildings or are attached to buildings themselves. In doing so, you make a significant contribution to the idea of "art in architecture". Rickey's mobiles in urban spaces shape the image of a city. A free sculpture has been standing on the grounds of the Fulda University of Applied Sciences for 20 years. Previously it was part of the exhibition "Spielraum - Raumspiele" in front of the Alte Oper in Frankfurt/M. The five-meter-high monumental work in the entrance area of the campus consists of asymmetrically attached, needle-like metal arms. They are powered solely by the power of the wind without any motor assistance. Depending on the wind direction, the arms of the free plastic also rotate in different directions. The movement expresses the theme of the artistic work.
A kinetic sculpture by George Rickes also adorns the Hessischer Rundfunk broadcasting building in Frankfurt am Main. It consists of three stainless steel rods. You seem to be in a weightless state of suspension. The wind causes them to move and create ever new constellations. In 2001 there was a group exhibition entitled "Summer Rooms" in the Pels-Leusden gallery in Berlin, which also included works by Rickey. He spent his last years in California near Santa Barbara and in Saint Paul.
