Plant Stand, 1983 47 1/4 in. x 47 1/4 in. (120.02 cm x 120.02 cm) The Arkansas Arts Center Foundation Collection, 1984. 84.32
Albert Paley
Having already made a reputation as a goldsmith, Paley began to explore blacksmithing when he moved to Rochester, New York in 1969. Since that time his work has focused on functional applied arts - lamp stands, bookends, candlesticks, tables and benches - as well as monumental architectural commissions. One of his best is the grouping of four sculptural pylons at the Worthham Center for the Performing Arts in Houston, Texas.
Plant Stand, acquired by the museum in 1983, consists of a bundle of vertical elements forged out of mild steel. The twisting of the steel into tendril-like forms is possible because mild steel is a low carbon metal that is particularly pliant at superheated temperatures. The sinuous flowing line here - not unlike a three-dimensional drawing - was inspired by art nouveau and northern European ironwork. Paley's organic style, combined with his experimental approach to metal, and his unique forging processes, has led the way to a revival in American metalsmithing.
Paley was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1944. He has a B.F.A. and an M.F.A. in painting, weaving and sculpture from the Tyler School of Art, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While currently appointed to an endowed cHair at the Rochester Institute of Technology, he resides in Rochester, New York.
  
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