BRONZES BY AMIR BEY
Special by THE NEW TIMES HOLLER!
A Report on the Hard Facts of Art
© Amir Bey, 2012
October 13
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Bronze. It's alchemical, its process combines fire and metal. It can be cast, textured, given a patina.
Because it's soft, you can hammer little bronze pieces into larger ones that magically disappear.
Besides bronze's monumental capacity, hold a small French sand cast piece, with the original from a stone carving, the bronze, with its density, its palm and finger afinities, will naturally lay or be held.
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FLORA CHEROT
French sandcasting Amir Bey, 2009
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THE SWIMMER
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Obverse side,French sandcasting (c) Amir Bey, 2009
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Reverse side 7.5"x4.5"x1" (c) Amir Bey
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THE EQUINOX CELEBRATION AT THE PYHARAM
This bronze is the next generation from The Equinox Celebration shown below. My earlier bronzes were French sand casting. I am a carver, and chasing bronze appealed to me because of my work with stone and wood. The original Equinox Celebration was a total carving journey!
(c) Amir Bey, 1993; 18"x36"x36"
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THE EQUINOX CELBRATION
(c) Amir Bey, 1980
African Wonderstone, Cedar burl, Indian Boxwood
12"x24"x20"
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SUPPORT
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African Wonderstone
(c) Amir Bey, 1980; 2"x1 3/4"x 3/4"
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Bronze, lost wax; 2010
(c) Amir Bey, 26"x22"x10"
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These two figures are from The Equinox Celebration, the stone carving on the left is from the original, and the one on the right is a later bronze version. I've done many variations of figures and concepts from the original, including a tarot deck.
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THE HAPPY LANDS DANCERS
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Bronze,9"x11"x7"
(c) Amir Bey, 1993
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Bronze
(c) Amir Bey, 1993
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On March 25, 1990, a Bronx afer-hours club, The Happy Land, was burnt down by a jilted boyfriend, causing 87 people to die. The club had been ordered to close for building violations, and the club owner, who died in the fire, was to go to court to fight eviction three days after the fire.
It was those violations that contributed to the victims deaths: blocked exits, no alarms and no sprinkler system.
HAPPY LANDS DANCERS is a fountain dedicated to those young people. There is a spout between the dancers, and the flowers would have the names of each victim, and would be smaller fountains; water would spray out of the female dancer's hair. This model is a functioning fountain when connected to a water pump.
There were a few ironies; the target of the boyfriend escaped; the club was managed by Jay Weiss, then the husband of the actress Kathleen Turner, who said "the fire was unfortunate but could have happened at a McDonald's." most of the victims were Hondourans celebrating Carnival.
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CAR 2619 ON THE D TRAIN MASKS
(c) Amir Bey, 1989
MALACHAI FAVORS, Bass, percussion
Bronze, ceramic, 16"x19"x5"
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In 1989 I created a series of 48 masks from life casts, CAR 2619 ON THE D TRAIN, that were shown at the Bronx Museum of the Arts's exhibtion HOT SPOTS, curated by Laura Hauptman. They were in most cases plaster, cement, or other casting compound mounted on ceramic backs, representing people (the masks) on the train (the ceramic pieces were "seats"). Six of them were cast in bronze and this one of Malachi Favors the bassist of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, and the following 4 are of members of that legendary quintet. Master printmaker Robert "Bob" Blackburn was also one of the "passengers."
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JOSEPH JARMAN
Reeds, percussion
Bronze, ceramic, 18"x15"x5"
(c) Amir Bey, 1989
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ROSCOE MITCHELL
Reeds, percussion
Bronze, ceramic, 18"15"5"
(c) Amir Bey, 1989
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LESTER BOWIE
Trumpet
Bronze, ceramic, 18"x15"x5"
(c) Amir Bey, 1989
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DON MOYE
Drums, percussion
Bronze, ceramic, 18"15"5"
(c) Amir Bey, 1989
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ROBERT "BOB" BLACKBURN
(c) Amir Bey, 1989
Master printmaker and founder of the Printmaking Workshop (1946), the oldest continuously running workshop in the U.S.
Bronze, ceramic, 17"x19"x5"
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URBAN ARMOR
(c) Amir Bey, 1986
Bronze, my hair, guitar back, acrylic, subway token, cherry seeds, and other goodies, 22"x12"x2"
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When Bob came by my studio he brought some cherries and we ate them before we did the cast. Later, I made URBAN ARMOR using them along with some bronze shapes I cut out of wax to make this deity for protection against urban ills.
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SELF PORTRAIT
(c) Amir Bey, 1983
Bronze, My hair, 9"x4"x3"
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WOMBUS
Bronze, 1983; 5"x9"x3"; WOMBUS: A womb in motion; the fetus is visible in the center.
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(c) Amir Bey, 1983
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(c) Amir Bey, 1989
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WOMBUS JEWELS
Bronze, 1985; 1 1/4" Length
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BURDEN (Reclining)
Bronze, 2010; 6"x3"x3".
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The original was carved in African Wonderstone.
One of my favorite stones, but I found out it contains asbestos,
so I'll not carve it until I have adequate space and air!
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BURDEN (upright)
Bronze, 2010; 6"x3"x3"
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LOVE TOYS
RIOT OF THE LOVE TOYS
Bronze, 2004; Each figure is 4"x3"x1 1/2"
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(c) Amir Bey, 2004: Each figure is 4"x3"x1 1/2"
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(c) Amir Bey, 2004
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MASKETTES
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I thought of this series as figures and not faces.
It started with creating a protective brazier for my wife the late vocalist Milene Bey,
who was fighting breast cancer.
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MILENE BEY'S BRAZIER
Bronze, 1987; 4"x9"x3"
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MICHELE BATETA
Bronze, 2005; 7"x4"x3"
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NICK CHEROT
Bronze, 2005; 5"x4"x3"
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MICHAEL KELLY WILLIAMS
Bronze, 2005; 5"x4"x3"
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AMIR BEY
Bronze, 2005; 5"x4"x3"
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