New work by sculptor James Vilona at Dolce

13 Jan New work by sculptor James Vilona at Dolce

[click “Play” to hear James Vilona’s conversation with Susan]

James Vilona’s chair, a lyrical bronze spiral, is the first thing guests to our Telluride home see, and it is, hands down, our favorite piece of functional art.

Mies van der Rohe’s “Barcelona Chair,” designed in 1929 for the World Exposition in Spain and Le Corbusier’s “Chaise,” created at about the same time, are considered 20th century classics. Charles and Ray Eames’ “Chaise Longue,” was a prototype submitted for a competition held in 1948 at New York City’s The Museum of Modern Art. Elegantly asymmetrical, the Longue was meant to be inexpensive, lightweight, versatile and appealing to young families. Made of dyed cotton cords and steel, Brazilians Fernando and Humberto Campanas’ Vermelha Chair, 1993, looks like a kitchen mop or a bird’s nest on steel legs.

One day the work of James Vilona will take its rightful place in the Museum of Modern Art’s Architecture and Design wing alongside these legendary designs.

The artist is already on his way. A short list of Vilona’s installations includes:

•  Sculpture Park and Civic Center, Cerritos, California
 
• Mennello Museum of American contempary art, Orlando, Florida
 
• Time Warner Building, New York

• Trump Tower, New York and Chicago
 
• Denver Children’s Hospital, Aurora, Colorado
 
• Sculpture on the Blue, Breckenridge, Colorado
 
• Four Seasons Hotel, Denver, Colorado

• Las Vegas Design Center Las Vegas, Nevada

James Vilona’s newest work is on display at Telluride Dolce Gallery, Friday, January 14 – Tuesday, January 18. The single piece, a Mobius bench which took a year to create, is made stainless and high carbon steel. It is part of a new series of chair art.

“I love dynamic tension created by uniting the sleek lines and cold hardness of stainless with the warm sensuality of the forged thick steel component. The end result is an inviting yin/yang-like balance.”

On Saturday, January 15, and Monday, January 17, 6 p.m., Dolce, 226 West Colorado, James Vilona demonstrates how to create a patina on metal.

For further information, click the “play” button and listen to James Vilona’s brief interview.