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

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Ruth Asawa Artworks

Ruth Asawa (163 results)

Untitled(S.073, Hanging Single Sphere, Five..., 1962

Ruth Asawa

Untitled(S.073, Hanging Single Sphere, Five..., 1962

Sale Date: October 22, 2016

Auction Closed

Flower with Branches, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Flower with Branches, 1979

Sale Date: June 11, 2016

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1970, 1970

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1970, 1970

Sale Date: May 24, 2016

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.352, Hanging Open Windows Form..., 1965

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.352, Hanging Open Windows Form..., 1965

Sale Date: May 11, 2016

Auction Closed

Untitled

Follower of Ruth Asawa

Sale Date: November 15, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.771, Wall-mounted, Closed..., 1980

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.771, Wall-mounted, Closed..., 1980

Sale Date: November 11, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.364 Basket form), 1948–1949

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.364 Basket form), 1948–1949

Sale Date: September 24, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.386, Hanging, Five-Lobed,..., 1965

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.386, Hanging, Five-Lobed,..., 1965

Sale Date: September 24, 2015

Auction Closed

Frog, 1968

Ruth Asawa

Sale Date: May 31, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitled, S. 080 (Hanging Five-Lobed..., 1950

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, S. 080 (Hanging Five-Lobed..., 1950

Sale Date: May 14, 2015

Auction Closed

Plaque, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Sale Date: February 23, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitled, S.750 (Hanging Open Form with , 1960–1965

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, S.750 (Hanging Open Form with , 1960–1965

Sale Date: March 1, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitles S.621 (Hanging six-lobed,..., 1973

Ruth Asawa

Untitles S.621 (Hanging six-lobed,..., 1973

Sale Date: January 31, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitled (Tree Form

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Tree Form

Sale Date: January 23, 2015

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.618, Hanging Sphere Within a..., 1952

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.618, Hanging Sphere Within a..., 1952

Sale Date: November 13, 2014

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.617, Hanging, Five Interlocked..., 1959

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.617, Hanging, Five Interlocked..., 1959

Sale Date: November 13, 2014

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.118, Wall-Mounted, Tied Wire,..., 1999

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.118, Wall-Mounted, Tied Wire,..., 1999

Sale Date: November 13, 2014

Auction Closed

Plaque, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Sale Date: October 27, 2014

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.002), 1998

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.002), 1998

Sale Date: October 12, 2014

Auction Closed

Hanging Five-Lobed Continuous Form with..., 1954

Ruth Asawa

Hanging Five-Lobed Continuous Form with..., 1954

Sale Date: October 1, 2014

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1979

Sale Date: August 25, 2014

Auction Closed

Cat, 1946

Ruth Asawa

Sale Date: May 17, 2014

Auction Closed

Untitled S. 359 (Hanging single-lobed..., 1953–1974

Ruth Asawa

Untitled S. 359 (Hanging single-lobed..., 1953–1974

Sale Date: May 15, 2014

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.608, Hanging Six-Lobed..., 1959

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.608, Hanging Six-Lobed..., 1959

Sale Date: May 14, 2014

Auction Closed

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