Page 57 - Studio International - July August 1973

Albion, Xeeque and Felindre,
their gleaming stainless steel
components defying or expounding
the law of gravity, demonstrated that
the state of equilibrium of each
remained constant for both large and
small sizes. (Small sizes came in
editions of 4 and 6). Felindre,
incorporating in its construction two
sets of would-be tinkling chimes,
silent in the absence of a fresh breeze
through the gallery, described in a
highly polished way, as did the other
works, the kind of space-weight
suspension-tension thing with which
we are more than conversant through
the auspices of the G LC open-air
sculpture department. Albion and
Xeeque, in their elegant mise en scene
of the slight taking the weight of the
massive, of the unlikely stability of the
curved surface against the curved
surface, were as gripping in their posed
precariousness as the counterbalanced
descent of a limb of Tower Bridge.
Photographs of larger works
completed since Pye's last Redfern
exhibition in 1969 included a
multiple exposure photo of an
elliptical riddle. 'What appears to be a
cylinder is sliced at an angle in two
places ,the cuts producing what one
would expect to be an elliptical cross
section ... ', but no, ' ... the sections
revolve in register with each other—
an apparent physical contradiction.'
It came as a surprise that this
teasing piece, drive motors having
produced 'a cycle of frozen and
moving relationships', ends up as a
static vertical column called simply
Revolving Tower.
A few doors down Cork Street the
Mercury Gallery housed a dozen and
a half pieces of Beer, Hornton,
Polyfant, Bath and Portland Stone,
resin, slate, aluminium and bronze.
Shelley Fausset, the creator of this
collection of delightful surfaces,
appeared committed to the
investigation of the possibility of a
cube becoming a sphere, a square
becoming a disc. His composite forms
spoke of many hours of carving around
the more alike than unlike question.
William Pye Xeeque 1973. Stainless steel, 96 x 85in.
The chunky bronze linear pieces
invited the viewer to choose between
'two ways up'. I tried four ways up
with Linear form, two ways up
before tiring of the game. Large
cube I sphere, obviating description
rocked gently and stupidly, given a
slight nudge. Resin disguised as
stone, the material of this piece,
unlike stainless steel, has a distinctly
uncommercial and rather friendly
feeling. q
TONY ROTHON

Carel Visser Flat and Closed 1972. Leather and steel, 5 <150 .150cm.
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