Licensing

Achieving Transparencies

Narrator: Aiko Cuneo, Ruth Asawa's daughter

Transcription

Ruth used a variety of wires, including iron, brass, copper, bronze, stainless steel, galvanized steel, aluminum, monel and even gold-filled wire. Each wire had its different physical and visual properties. She used iron for her earlier sculptures, then tried copper and brass. She preferred copper because it’s more malleable and less corrosive. She often used two or more kinds of wire in making her long, interlocking sculptures. By using wires of different colors, she was able to achieve the transparencies that she liked so much.