‘Plaitoim’ Sculpture: Its Origin and Development

Leonardo,Vol. 4 , pp. 351-354. PergamonPress 1971. Printed in Great Britain PLAIT0N’ SCULPTURE: ITS ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT Harold Cousins* I coinedthe term ‘Plaiton’[l]from the French word ‘laiton’,meaningbrass,andthe Englishword ‘plate’. It is meant to describe the kind of sculpture that interests me, as well as my particular conceptionof it. The plastic expression consists of the repetitive use of metal plates of similar size and form welded together in a predeterminedorder [2]. The concept involves giving special attention to the form of the empty space between the solid elements of a sculpture , as well as to the empty space surrounding the sculpture [3]. In the early nineteen-fifties, a sculptor-welder in Paris was still something of an oddity. In fact, most non-figurative sculptors were regarded askance. I recall an experience in a gallery there when I was introduced to the owner by a young collector who occasionally bought an inexpensive painting or print in the establishment. After the usual exchange of pleasantries and the inevitable: ‘How do you like Paris?’ (I had already lived there for 3 years), I produced photographs of my work. The owner regarded them with interestand a certain sympathy. After several minutes he turned to me and said: ‘I would have to be a saint to exhibit your sculpturesbut you must be an angel to make them!’ Far from being discouraged,I think I understood what he was saying. Thiswas not the time to exhibit my work-yet, there was the nucleus of something initthat shouldbe developed,somethingthat should be extracted. Having already worked in traditional materials such as wood, stone and terra-cotta, I began to use combinations of different materials, such as wood and metal; rope and wood, and stone and wire. I continued also to work with solid forms. During this time, I was an avid visitor to the ethnological museums in Paris. My favorite was the MusCe de 1’Homme where the mastery of primitive artists with wooden sculpture particularly interested me. Even more intriguing, however, were certain statues made of wood to which other materials had been added or of combinations of different metals. In some cases, cloth, rope and feathers had *American artist living at 46 Place du Chatelah, 1050 Brussels,Belgium.(Received 6 April 1971.) been used. What especially attracted me was the use of sheathsof metal, oftentogetherwithnailsand chains. Thesesculptureshavea vibrancythat seems to be produced both between the metal elements themselves and between the metal elementsand the overall sculpturalform. I also frequented the ancient Egyptian section of the Louvre, studying the bird and tomb sculptures, and the gold-plated decorations. I found they possessed the same basic quality: they gave one the visualimpressionof somethingexistingthat was not present intheformsof theirmaterialparts. Ibecame convincedthat this ‘something’was the form of the empty space between the parts of a sculpture or around a solid. This is analogous to the reversible figure-ground effectin two dimensions. A classicalexampleof this illusion is the goblet whose cross-sectionconsists of the outlines of two opposing faces that are perceivedif one concentrateson the shape of the background instead of on the shape of the goblet (cf. Fig. 3in Reference4). In threedimensions,it ismuch more difficultto notice such effects. In 1949, I was one of the students of the late sculptor Ossip Zadkine in Paris. The relationship between the master and his studentswas directand, attimes,bruising. He askedus to makeastudyfrom lifeof an old man wearing a heavy coat. Our efforts were less than appreciated by our teacher. After reducing one of the two women students to tears, he ordered the entire classto go immediatelyto the intersection of Boulevards Montparnasse and Raspail where stands Rodin’s famous statue of Balzac. He asked us especially to look at the way the fulllength cloak was draped over the body! The statue, though partly hidden by trees, is in plain view of the terrace of the CafC du DBme (much frequented by our class). Although we had seen it, I do not believe that any of us had ever really looked at it. That day we did look-it was a revelation. As in draped classical Greek statues, thecloaksuggestedtheformunderneath,rather than defined it. It aroused one’s imagination...