Verbal Description Transcript:

Red Curly Tail is an abstract standing mobile made in 1970 of sheet metal, rod, bolts, and paint. Overall, it stands 16 feet high by about 23 feet wide by 12 feet deep. A lower, vertical part of the sculpture stands on the ground, on two circular feet. An upper, horizontal part can move with the wind. The standing structure at the base is painted a brick red color. Its two circular feet are planted wide apart; the feet support two legs that sweep upwards, before joining together and continuing up to a point. Metal bolts, painted the same red, are visible in this upper, joined section. From this upper part, a long flowing section of metal, painted in the same red, sweeps out to the side and curls back round at the tip. The highest point of the base, where the fused legs reach their apex, supports the mobile element of the sculpture. This consists of a horizontal unpainted metal bar, attached at its center to the vertical base so it appears to be balanced across it. At both ends of the bar are shorter metal crossbars; and attached to these crossbars are painted metal elements, 5 in all – 3 on one side, 2 on the other. The shapes of the 5 metal pieces are similar but not identical: they are all polygons, the sides of which vary in length. The whole composition is asymmetrical: one side has 3 elements painted a deep chrome yellow, and has a second crossbar branching off the first. The other side has just one crossbar; one of its elements is black, the other white. This arrangement of connecting metal bars and elements can move gently or even rotate completely depending on the air currents. The sculpture is installed against an S-shaped curved wall that wraps it around and adds to the sense of movement. The sculpture can also be viewed from above: the exhibition is installed in the museum’s double height galleries, so this large sculpture can be viewed from one of three overlooks on the fourth floor of the museum.