Ruth Asawa

(American, 1926–2013)

Ruth Asawa was an American artist known for her intricate sculptures based on sinuous organic forms. Using galvanized wire, stone, and bronze, Asawa crafted nest-like works inspired by native Mexican basket-weaving techniques. “I was interested in it because of the economy of a line, making something in space, enclosing it without blocking it out. It’s still transparent,” she said of her materials. “I realized that if I was going to make these forms, which interlock and interweave, it can only be done with a line because a line can go anywhere.” Born on January 24, 1926 in Norwalk, CA to Japanese immigrants, her early life was blighted by her family’s detainment in a Japanese-American internment camp during World War II. After the war, Asawa left California in pursuit of a teaching degree from Milwaukee State Teachers College. Met by discrimination in Milwaukee, the artist abandoned her teaching degree and ventured to Black Mountain College in Asheville, NC. While at Black Mountain College, she studied under prominent artists such as John Cage, Josef Albers, Buckminster Fuller, and Merce Cunningham. Asawa died on August 5, 2013 in San Francisco, CA. Today, the artist’s works are in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, and the de Young Museum in San Francisco.

Ruth Asawa News

Auctions

5 Fascinating Backstories Behind the Week's Auction Highlights, From Banksy's Graffitied Church Window to Paula Rego's Human Ostriches

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5 Fascinating Backstories Behind the Week's Auction Highlights, From Banksy's Graffitied Church Window to Paula Rego's Human Ostriches
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Auctions

Christie's First-Ever 'Relay' Sale Brought in an Impressive $421 Million in a Four-Hour, Four-City Digital Marathon

by Eileen Kinsella
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Ruth Asawa Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Ruth Asawa (163 results)
Untitled (S.402, Hanging Two Interlocked..., 1954

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.402, Hanging Two Interlocked..., 1954

Sale Date: July 10, 2020

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (S.853, HANGING FIVE-LOBED, THREE..., 1956

Ruth Asawa

UNTITLED (S.853, HANGING FIVE-LOBED, THREE..., 1956

Sale Date: June 30, 2020

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.408, Hanging Five-Lobed,..., 1953–1954

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.408, Hanging Five-Lobed,..., 1953–1954

Sale Date: July 1, 2020

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.549), 1950–1954

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.549), 1950–1954

Sale Date: June 23, 2020

Auction Closed

Chrysanthemums, 1983

Ruth Asawa

Chrysanthemums, 1983

Sale Date: January 24, 2020

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (S.256, HANGING TIED-WIRE,..., 1965

Ruth Asawa

UNTITLED (S.256, HANGING TIED-WIRE,..., 1965

Sale Date: November 15, 2019

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (S.422, HANGING SINGLE-LOBED, THREE , 1954

Ruth Asawa

UNTITLED (S.422, HANGING SINGLE-LOBED, THREE , 1954

Sale Date: November 15, 2019

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.387, Hanging Three Separate..., 1955

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.387, Hanging Three Separate..., 1955

Sale Date: November 14, 2019

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.165, Hanging Two-Sectioned, , 1958–1960

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.165, Hanging Two-Sectioned, , 1958–1960

Sale Date: September 25, 2019

Auction Closed

Hanging Sculpture

Style of Ruth Asawa

Hanging Sculpture

Sale Date: September 15, 2019

Auction Closed

Desert Flower, 1965

Ruth Asawa

Desert Flower, 1965

Sale Date: April 14, 2019

Auction Closed

Untitled (SD.085, Sculpture Drawing: Tied..., 1970

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (SD.085, Sculpture Drawing: Tied..., 1970

Sale Date: November 14, 2018

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.330, Hanging Asymmetrical..., 1965

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.330, Hanging Asymmetrical..., 1965

Sale Date: November 16, 2018

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.513, Hanging Two Interlocking..., 1950

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.513, Hanging Two Interlocking..., 1950

Sale Date: November 16, 2018

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.724, Hanging, Single-Lobed,..., 1980

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.724, Hanging, Single-Lobed,..., 1980

Sale Date: November 16, 2018

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (S.371, HANGING TIED-WIRE,..., 1965

Ruth Asawa

UNTITLED (S.371, HANGING TIED-WIRE,..., 1965

Sale Date: September 25, 2018

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.809 Freestanding Tied Wire, Two..., 1965

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.809 Freestanding Tied Wire, Two..., 1965

Sale Date: June 10, 2018

Auction Closed

Flower with Branches

Ruth Asawa

Flower with Branches

Sale Date: May 12, 2018

Auction Closed

Flower with Branches, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Flower with Branches, 1979

Sale Date: March 10, 2018

Auction Closed

For Tom, 1978

Ruth Asawa

For Tom, 1978

Sale Date: March 10, 2018

Auction Closed

Portrait of a Woman

Ruth Asawa

Portrait of a Woman

Sale Date: November 19, 2017

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (S.797 HANGING DOUBLE-LOBED,..., 1954

Ruth Asawa

UNTITLED (S.797 HANGING DOUBLE-LOBED,..., 1954

Sale Date: November 17, 2017

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (S.449, HANGING THREE LOBED FORM..., 1958

Ruth Asawa

UNTITLED (S.449, HANGING THREE LOBED FORM..., 1958

Sale Date: May 19, 2017

Auction Closed

UNTITLED, 1979

Ruth Asawa

UNTITLED, 1979

Sale Date: November 19, 2016

Auction Closed

English (US)

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