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.

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Ruth Asawa Artworks

Ruth Asawa (163 results)

Untitled, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1979

Sale Date: July 1, 2012

Auction Closed

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

Ruth Asawa

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

Sale Date: July 16, 2012

Auction Closed

Watermelon, 1973

Ruth Asawa

Watermelon, 1973

Sale Date: May 21, 2012

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1979

Sale Date: May 21, 2012

Auction Closed

Untitled (S.541, Hanging Five-Lobed, Single..., 1955

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S.541, Hanging Five-Lobed, Single..., 1955

Sale Date: May 9, 2012

Auction Closed

Untitled (S. 407), 1952

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (S. 407), 1952

Sale Date: March 9, 2012

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1979

Sale Date: November 22, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled (Bank)

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Bank)

Sale Date: November 22, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled (+ Untitled, lrgr; 2 works), 1965

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (+ Untitled, lrgr; 2 works), 1965

Sale Date: November 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled S.431 (Open undulating form..., 1950–1959

Ruth Asawa

Untitled S.431 (Open undulating form..., 1950–1959

Sale Date: November 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled S.013 (Hanging single-lobed,..., 1987

Ruth Asawa

Untitled S.013 (Hanging single-lobed,..., 1987

Sale Date: November 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled S.387 (Three lobed continuous form..., 1955

Ruth Asawa

Untitled S.387 (Three lobed continuous form..., 1955

Sale Date: November 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled bronze flower, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled bronze flower, 1979

Sale Date: August 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1979

Sale Date: May 24, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled (Hanging tied wire, open-center,..., 1965

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Hanging tied wire, open-center,..., 1965

Sale Date: March 10, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled (Basket), 1950

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Basket), 1950

Sale Date: November 23, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1979

Sale Date: November 23, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled (Hanging six-lobed,..., 1965–1969

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Hanging six-lobed,..., 1965–1969

Sale Date: November 11, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled (Continuous form within a form), 1952

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Continuous form within a form), 1952

Sale Date: June 8, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled (Continuous form), 1950–1959

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Continuous form), 1950–1959

Sale Date: May 23, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1960

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1960

Sale Date: May 3, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1979

Ruth Asawa

Untitled, 1979

Sale Date: May 3, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled (Snowflake), 1955

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Snowflake), 1955

Sale Date: April 27, 2010

Auction Closed

Untitled (Hanging, two interlocking open..., 1960

Ruth Asawa

Untitled (Hanging, two interlocking open..., 1960

Sale Date: December 6, 2009

Auction Closed

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