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Tangled Creations
RICHARDXZAWITZ
Nothing is out of the questionthe way I live my life.I'm always thinking about creating.My future starts when I wake upevery morning,that's when it starts...when I wake up and see the first light.Then I'm grateful..."
- Miles Davis
"
Contents 1 ArtistStatement
5 RichardXZawitzandtheExperienceofArt
21 TheVersatilityofVision
35 ConceptualEnvironments
53 AwakeningPerception
65 TangleCreations
79 InfinityGalleries
83 CurriculumVitae
84 GlobalNewsMediaandRichardXZawitz
Copyright © 2010 Richard X Zawitz
First published in Hong Kong in 2010 by Richard X Zawitz
This edition published in 2012 by Richard X Zawitz
Infinity Gallery
385 Oyster Point Road
South San Francisco, 94080
USA
T(USA): +650 616 7900
T(HK): +852 2865 1853
W: www.richardxzawitz.com
W: www.tanglecreations.com
W: www.tangletherapy.com
Text by Jonathan Thomson
Designed and Art Directed by Andrew McWalters
Conceptual environments by Madison Lee
Printed by Lammar Offset Printing Ltd, Hong Kong
ISBN 978-0-615-42979-3
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without prior written permission from the publisher.
1
Artist Statement I dedicate this book to Creativity as the raison d’être for my being and
existence.
My work since the late 1960s has been devoted to the essences and energies
which first became manifest to me through Chinese Taoism and then
through the entire alchemical pantheon of the form and formlessness of
Asian philosophy and metaphysics. With the good fortune of history (and
in particular the mind freedom, revolution and counter culture movements
of the mid 1960s) matching my in-born urges, I was also able to unlearn the
western bias toward aesthetics and the arts. Thus, as a natural born three-
dimensional plus-ist, I chose sculpture to be the medium for my art.
At the Art Department of the University of Hawaii I was mentored by an
esteemed scholar from India, Professor Prithwish Neogy. In our one-on-one
sessions as master and pupil, I was assigned a variety of projects from looking
for specific lava rocks to carve, to meditation and the study of Zen painting
and reading other scholars, including Jacques Maritain, D.T. Suzuki and of
course Neogy’s own mentor Ananda Coomaraswamy. During this period
I learned about many things including the ancient Indian concept of Rasa
which then became an important focus of my own aesthetic. Rasa is the
complete immersion of the individual with art and with the tradition of the
art. My understanding of Rasa in combination with the study of Asian art
history and philosophy influenced me in many profound ways and I have ever
since attempted to manifest this sculpturally.
I believe there are key periods in the course of an individual artist or seeker’s
life that are influential in the shaping of that life just as there are key periods
in history that are influential in shaping cultures and civilizations. The 1960s
was the right place for me and the right time to both learn and un-learn. For
me it was a once in a lifetime transformational period and I have carried the
benefit of that experience with me ever since. In his book “Iconoclast” the
neuroscientist Gregory Berns describes how innovators are able to unlock
their creative potential. Like them, I have no fear of change.
After my graduation in 1972 Professor Neogy recommended that I go to
Japan to study with his great friend the renowned Zen painter Morita Shiryu,
and with the local carvers who make Buddha sculptures in wood. I spent
one year in Kyoto which at that time was a crossroads of creativity where
Westerners like me were able to meet and embrace the essences and
energies of the East and art.
My studies and experiences led me to hypothesise the existence of one
essential particle of matter which in turn led to my discovery of the “Tangle
Particle” which manifests itself in two distinct and parallel ways and is
Top: Themotherofallthings,Lava stone, 1970
Above: Zawitzresidence,c. 1972Kyoto Jisho In Karasuma dori.
Left: Zawitzholding"LightofInfinity",2010(Photographer: Joan Boivin)Infinity studio, Hong Kong.
2 3
explained through science and humanism. The essential manifestation of
the “Tangle Particle” is as a spiral, wave, curve, circle or arc. In nature and
science it is found in galaxies, proteins, light waves, sound waves, hurricanes,
cyclones, the growth patterns of all manner of fauna and flora, and in every
culture’s art and design (think Van Gogh Sun Flowers and Starry Nights, and
every type of painting (including body art) or textile design which uses knots,
curves, spirals, waves or circles). Make your own observations someday, you
will amazed.
The images you will see in this book are my Tao. My Tao manifests it’s oneness
through the multiplicity of entities that I have created and which I think have
in some small way may have benefited humanity. Wherever these works are
placed, I can promise an emission of positive energy into the environment. I
do not think it is enough to just displace space with so-called art or sculpture;
instead, one must strive to reach the people who will experience the art. In
a world of negativity I try to provoke happiness and well-being. My mission
is Peace Through Creativity.
In this book you will see examples of work from every period of my life.
Alien Buddha is a stone, wood and stainless steel mixed work, that took
a painstakingly long time to make, but was as a result more rewarding to
complete. The stone I used is called “Picasso Marble” and it was a joy to
work with. It is very hard, and contains curving streaks. As a sculptor, my
job was to find and depict them in much the same way that a painter builds
an image using line and tone. My later sculptures include Infinity 634, a site
specific work that was commissioned by the JW Marriott hotel in Hong Kong
in 2009 for the hotel lobby. The exact positioning of this work completes a
near perfect environment for positive energy with glass, water, wood, stone,
plants and people.
My small sculpture called “Tangle” has sold more than 100 million
copyrighted editions globally, and is used for everything from play to therapy
and has educational uses as well as offering pure aesthetic pleasure. My
series of large scale sculptures called “Infinity” that are made in stainless
steel and other related materials are another attempt to represent the Tao in
a three dimensional-plus form. I think people engage with these works both
through their visual elegance and their unseen energies. The Tangle Particle
is also versatile enough to be applied to functional things including lamps,
constructions toys, sculpture as furniture, and stereo speakers.
My work also includes virtual sculpture that helps me to visualize how my
physical sculpture would appear in a variety of environments. The virtual
world allows me to think and plan on a massive scale. These monumental
works are akin to landmark architecture in scale but have no function other
than enhancing the amenity of the environment through a universal aesthetic
and generating generous flows of positive energy.
The overall purpose of the book is to enlighten and amuse the mind and the
senses. I am a true believer in creativity as the purpose of life and the reason
why we are all here. I think that all of the great cultural occurrences that
are known in recorded history, from the founding of religions through to the
development cultures and entire civilizations, are founded on man’s basic
urge to create.
There are three aspects to life – the physical, intellectual and the spiritual as
in the world of things, the world of thought and the world of feelings. Some
of these are present in all forms of life but it is only in man that all three come
together in body, mind and spirit. It is the combination of all three that gives
us the capacity to believe, to reason and to create. The traditional hierarchy
of man’s needs is based on a solid platform of physiological needs with safety,
love and belonging, esteem and self actualisation in ascending order above
them. I believe that creativity, and the drive to become everything that one
is capable of becoming, is in fact a basic need that must be met or there will
be an imbalance in nature. I see the lack of balance in global affairs and
the general shift towards a negative environment as evidence of this and
therefore believe that the need to create, and facilitate creativity, is greater
than ever.
I want to thank Jonathan Thomson for his kindness and wisdom to curate my
work and mastermind this book and Andrew McWalters for his creative skills
and art direction. I would also like to thank my family and dedicated wife
Kanya and children Nick and Aimee, and my grandson Charlie. Gosh knows I
would be living in a cave somewhere without them…..
I wish everyone who reads this book creativity and wellness and invite you
the reader to project that creativity and wellness both outward and inward.
Very sincerely,
Below: AlienBuddha,1997-2004(Photographer: Joan Boivin)6'Hx4'W, Picasso marble, stainless steel.
Bottom: Infinitybeta4.16,200836"Hx40"W, stainless steel, acrylic.
Opposite: Buddhascroll,197260"Hx30"W, ink on paper.
4 5
Richard X Zawitz and the Experience of Art In the 1960s and 1970s a great many young people from the West travelled
to the East seeking the enlightenment they believed could be found in
Eastern religions and cultures. The “Hippie Trail” is now the stuff of legends
for today’s independent travellers. The reality of what it was actually like
may now be exaggerated, but it is true to say that many travellers on the trail
did have inspiring, life-changing spiritual experiences. One such traveller was
the American sculptor Richard Zawitz.
Zawitz is today best known as the inventor of the Tangle, a hand-held
executive toy that consists of a series of quarter round sections of tubing,
either in plastic or stainless steel that are joined end to end so that each
piece can swivel. The loop thus formed can be manipulated to form an array
of different sinuous shapes. Zawitz’s work is extraordinarily allusive. It is
an art object of simple beauty that is capable of conveying an extraordinary
range of emotions and free associations. The work’s sweeping twisting lines
and fluid wanderings are like rolling vapours made solid. For Zawitz, the
twists and turns have an organic quality, and mark a nexus between coherent
patterns of flow and the discordance of turbidity, the point where vortices,
eddies and ripples emerge out of chaos.
By some measures, Zawitz’s Tangle may be one of the most successful art
objects ever made with more than one hundred million editions currently in
circulation. Now reborn as sculpture on a monumental scale, all with the title
Infinity (and a unique reference number) his work is able to touch and inspire
even more people as it transforms public spaces into havens of spiritual
tranquillity.
Zawitz began his travels in Asian philosophy and art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
with Chan Wing Tsit. Chan was a consummate scholar, teacher and mentor,
and a living exemplar of the Chinese philosophical tradition. Of all the leading
figures in twentieth century Chinese philosophy, he was among the first to
make his home in the West, teaching and publishing in English and Chinese,
but always in touch with Asia. From Chan Zawitz learned about Chinese
philosophy, and most importantly, the Tao Te Ching.1 He was also convinced
by Chan to further his studies at the University of Hawaii, where Chan himself
had started his teaching career in the United States and where he began, in
1939, a series of conferences on Asian and comparative philosophy which
later gave rise to the journal Philosophy East and West.2
In Hawaii, Zawitz began a two year period of independent study with
Prithwish Neogy, who was a renowned scholar of Asian art and aesthetics.
Here he encountered the writings of Ananda Coomaraswamy, Jacques
Maritain and Sigfried Giedion and began to develop his own philosophical
pluralism, drawing on primitive art, Taoism, Zen Buddhism, tantric art, rasa
Left: PortraitwithInfinity6.34.r9,2009Stainless steel, granite,JW Marriott, Hong Kong,
6 7
He distinguishes two stages in the creative process, the first which occurs
below the level of consciousness in the “preconscious intellect” in which
are found “sources of knowledge and creativity, of love and supra-sensuous
desire hidden in the primordial translucid night of the intimate vitality of
the soul.”6 It is in the preconscious intellect that the artist’s soul ceases
to be controlled by the external world and his creative intuition begins to
germinate. In the second stage the creative idea is clarified for consciousness
and is expressed. In an age that is essentially practical, and which posits
praxis as the ultimate truth, he advocated the primacy of the spiritual.
Maritain’s revelations about the importance of intuition are reiterated by
Sigfried Giedion. Giedion is perhaps best known as an architectural historian,
and author of Space Time and Architecture. However, in his book The Eternal
Present: The Beginnings of Art, originally presented at the National Gallery
of Art in Washington DC in 1957 as the AW Mellon Lectures in Fine Arts, he
examines theories regarding the origins of art. Giedion notes that art is a
fundamental experience, born out of the urge for elemental expression. “It
grows out of man’s innate passion to develop a means of expression for his
inner life. There is no difference whether the basic impulse for these feelings
rises from a cosmic anguish, the urge to play, art for arts sake, or – as today
– the desire to express in signs and symbols the realm of the unconscious.”
The key to Zawitz’s philosophy is pluralism, a subtle melding of Eastern
and Western thought. This is not as straightforward as it might seem. In
his book Mysticism and Morality: Oriental Thought and Moral Philosophy
the philosopher Arthur Danto notes that while “the East has always held
the promise of a deeply alternative existence, satisfying and pacific and
exalting… It is nevertheless an aim of this book to discourage the hope that a
way through our moral perplexities may be found in the Orient.”7
and comparative philosophy to help articulate his understanding of the
fundamental underlying principles of art and creativity.
In his essay The Theory of Art in Asia, Ananda Coomaraswamy expounded on
many different issues from the nature and meaning of representation in Asia,
to symbolism and convention, originality and novelty, intensity and energy
and the nature of art itself.3 He concluded his essay with an examination
of rasa as a central part of the formal theory of art in India. In Sanskit, the
term rasa means the sap or juice of plants. In this physical sense, we can
readily grasp what this essence may imply, be it orange or lemon or any other
flavour. But when the word is applied to Indian art and aesthetic experience,
it also refers to the state of heightened delight produced in the viewers mind
by the emotion and experience of a work of art. The term was originally
applied to the performing arts of dance, drama and music, but, as pointed
out by Coomaraswamy, it is immediately applicable to all the arts. The
principle of rasa can be subdivided into nine distinct sentiments, each arising
from or embodying particular subjects and situations. These comprise the
erotic, comic, pathetic, furious, heroic, terrible, odious, marvellous and the
quiescent or tranquil sentiment. This last sentiment, known as Shanta,
comes from knowing, or at least approaching, the utter serenity of spiritual
tranquillity.
Maritain was a French Catholic philosopher who advocated what he called
“True Humanism” saying that the human person is both material and spiritual,
and can become more than a merely self–interested individual by acquiring
and practicing the habits necessary to actualize his humanity.4 In his Creative
Intuition in Art and Poetry Marutain describes creativity as naturalistic in the
sense that it does not rely on any external source or Platonic muse.5
Left: ZawitzwithredhatSwami, 1973(Photographer unknown)Photo taken on streets in Kathmandu.
Below:TibetanChortenTangbocheKhumbu,(Photographer: R X Zawitz)1973Himalayas, Nepal.
Bottom:ZawitzonKhumbutrailtowardsMtEverest,1973(Photographer unknown)Himalayas, Nepal.
Top: Tibetanmanwithprayerwheel, 1973, Kathmandu.
Left: Tibetannomadwithprayerwheel, 1973, Kathmandu.
Right: RichardXZawitz,1972(Photographer unknown)Zawitz sitting outside wood cutters cottage studio, Kyoto.
8 9
The literal meaning of the word Tao is path, or way. The term is generally
used in three ways: giving a name to the ultimate reality that surpasses
human experience; describing the observable rhythms and patterns of
the universe; and describing the way of human life when it is in harmony
with the Tao of the universe. An important aspect of the Tao is its state
of perpetual motion. “All things, as they come into being and develop,
progress through a series of changes moving persistently to a return to the
state of non-being, the primal unity and source of all things.”10 The basically
circular movement of Tao confirms the idea of heaven as round, symbolized
by the circle. The pictographs and ideograms of Chinese writing may often
themselves encapsulate their meaning. Thus the character tao combines the
character ch’o representing a foot taking a step or moving step by step and
the character shou, or head.11 The combination of head and foot symbolizes
Tao as an inner way, it also illustrates the circular, complete and perpetual
course of Tao for a circle’s beginning and end are the same and the movement
around its periphery is unceasing.12
These two pictographs also illustrate the Taoist idea of Tao as both unmoving
and continually moving, as the path lies motionless on the ground yet goes
somewhere and so has movement. This aspect of Tao is the basis of the
concept wu wei, a phrase which translates literally as inaction but in Taoism
means actionless activity or pure effectiveness.13 Another interpretation is
that the concept describes creative quietude, being that state when a certain
dislocation of the conscious self takes place, and which frees the resources of
the subconscious mind to engage in pure creativity.14
“I practice open ended creativity. I don’t have a point or a goal. I don’t set
a goal for the creative aspects of what I do. Do you know Aldous Huxley’s
Doors of Perception? By being able to open certain doors at certain times
you realize that there is more to life than what you see. There is another
dimension out there. Artists are able to get out of their ordinary mind. They
use visualization in numerous ways including meditation and so on. I use
numerous methodologies but one thing I use is just allowing things to come
in and open up in your brain. I am able to use a 3-D virtual reality in my head
to visualize things. I also utilize direct carving as I know there is something
inside the stone.”
Zawitz’s graduation work was a stone carving called First Twist. In this work
a cylinder of white marble rises from a trapezoid wooden base. At about half
its height, the cylinder bends sideways and turns up over itself completing
one full turn. At its apex, the cylinder tapers and ends in a roughly spherical
shape. It is a remarkably allusive work, suggesting at times either an Indian
figure in a pronounced tribhanga pose (where the figure is oppositely
bent at waist and neck to form a “S” shape), or a Tang dynasty figurine of
For Danto, the problem lies with an inability or unwillingness to put one’s
own cultural assumptions at risk. But Zawitz was able to take risks and to
“unlearn” his western aesthetic bias. 8 For him, the key that opens the doors
to perception is the nondualist interrelatedness of all things. It is this that
for him links the art of Asia with that of the West – from the humanism
of Michelangelo to the inventive genius of Da Vinci and the pure form of
Constantin Brancusi.
“In the Zen Buddhist tradition that I embrace I believe in the rule of no rule.
My professor Neogy taught me something that I have never stopped living
and that is life is not a matter of either / or, it is both / and. I have never
eliminated any possibilities. There is no reason to. Why should I? Why
should I conform? It is my job to use the understanding that I have been
given to perpetuate the conformity of non-conformity.”9
“My art practice is intuitive. I still to this day and everyday practice an ancient
Chinese exercise from Taoism called Tzu-jan, or spontaneity. I believe that to
be a true creative, you can’t be on a fixed path. This is both a belief system
and a methodology for me. It can be counter-productive if for example in
business you make fast spontaneous decisions, but I carry what I do into
everything that I do. Tzu-jan is a methodology. The great Chinese painters
all employed it. If something dripped that was not a setback but something
that you worked with. Spontaneity allows other multiple relations to happen
and in more of a Jungian synchronistic way than in a linear way, so that when
you allow these spontaneous moments to happen so many other things can
happen your life is completely open ended. It allows anything to happen.”
Left: FirstTwist,197136"Hx22"W, edition 1/1, Carrara marble.
Bottom:RichardXZawitz,1974(Photographer unknown)Meditating on the Khumbu trail to Everest base camp.
Top: Taocaligraphy,2010
Above: Chaosscroll,197360"Hx30"W, ink on paper.
10 11
work with the brush), space (including the formal qualities of composition
and line quality), and literary value (the moji). The moji is the character or
other component of the written word that was regarded as the irreducible
unit of calligraphy. In the 1940s and 1950s Morita advocated focus on the
formal qualities of calligraphy. In an essay about Matisse he enthuses about
Matisse’s extreme reduction of all form to pure and simplified line and,
as calligraphy is also an art of line, imagined these two art forms coming
together like a rainbow with one end in the East and one in the West.17
Morita’s own calligraphy is avowedly illegible. In a theory of expression
influenced by the Zen Buddhist principles taught by the Kyoto School of
philosophy which argued that while the West was tied to dualistic thinking
and approaches to art, the East pursued a path of nondualism, Morita
understood the given conventional forms (the moji) as attaining utter
sameness with something profoundly internal to the calligrapher. “The
character is revered as the timeless product of centuries of language use, but
at the same time it is intuited at a level so deeply interior to the calligrapher
as to undergo a massive upheaval when brought forth as an expression in
brush, ink and paper.”18
Zawitz also travelled to India, Nepal and Tibet. In Tibet he encountered
the Tibetan infinite knot, the pattern of interwoven lines without ending or
beginning that is a symbol of infinite life and creation. Zawitz returned to
America in 1975 and built a studio in Waltham, Massachusetts, in Boston’s
western suburbs. Here he began the process of unifying and reconciling his
myriad influences and experiences into the creation of a four dimensional
universal energy form. He was inspired to look for a shape or pattern that
could evoke the eternal without ever being stiff or constrained.
a woman with her hair piled characteristically high. As an abstract image,
the essential elements of the sculpture have been distilled in order the
simultaneously simplify and concentrate the composition. Abstraction in the
Greek sense of aphaeresis refers to “the process as well as the result of the
withdrawal from the particular, accidental, inessential in order to obtain the
general, inevitable, essential. By bringing together essential characteristics
in one artistic concept, abstraction offers us our most important means of
systematically arranging the boundless multiplicity of objects which approach
us in our perception, our imagination, and even in our thoughts.”15
In his senior year thesis that accompanied this work Zawitz wrote “It is the
reverse evolution from the complex to the simple; the simplicity of primal
unity and the transcending of the complex, the superficiality of things, that
the artist of Tao searches for.16
On his graduation in 1972 from the University of Hawaii with a major in fine
arts sculpture and sub majors in Asian art history and Asian philosophy, Zawitz
went to live and work as a sculptor in Kyoto, Japan. He became interested in
the story of Enku, an itinerant Buddhist monk who lived in Japan in the 17th
century in the early Edo period. Enku is known as a shugendo, a devotee of
a form of religion that is a conglomerate of Taoism, Shinto and Buddhism.
Shugendo means the path of training and testing and it centres on an ascetic
and nomadic life. Enku travelled all over Japan and everywhere he went, he
would carve an image of the Buddha. During his lifetime he was extremely
prolific and is reputed to have carved some 120,000 images of Buddha. No
two were alike and most were crudely fashioned from found timbers with
just a few stokes of an axe. These images were not made as monuments
or for self aggrandizement but for their spiritualism. Enku left these simple
expressions of prayer and devotion as a reminder of enlightenment in
hamlets and villages all over Japan.
The notion of a cheap, simple and widely available evocation of enlightened
creativity was to have an enduring impact on Zawitz. However, it was not
yet evident in the work that he produced at this time. A work of Zawitz
from this period is a rather bland wood carving representing Bodhidharma,
the Buddhist monk traditionally credited with having introduced the
Taoist influenced Ch’an (Zen in Japanese) Buddhism to China. Traditional
representations of Bodhidharma depict him as an ill-tempered, bearded and
wild-eyed ruffian.
In Japan Zawitz worked with the calligrapher Morita Shiryū who had played
an important role in developing a hybrid art that fused Japanese calligraphy
with aspects of Western expressionism. Morita theorized calligraphy as
having three properties: time (the duration of reading and of creating a
Bottom:Darumatorso, 197236"H x24"W, Japanese cypress.
Opposite Top: MoritaShiryu,1968Ink on rice paper with signature and seal below.
Opposite Left:RichardXZawitz,1973(Photographer unknown)Zawitz outside wood cutters cottage studio in Kyoto.
Opposite Right:Tibetanprayercircumambulation,1973(Photographer: R X Zawitz)Bodinath Stupa, Kathmandu.
12 13
having no shape of its own but capable of being infinitely accommodating.
Water also attains clarity through calmness – “muddy water let stand will
clear”. These are the virtues of wu wei.
Zawitz is also interested in the ways in which his forms seem to outline
volumetric space while the shapes created are open, empty and without
mass. His linked curves make an outline enclosing nothing. Emptiness is
a key Taoist concept as emptiness is Tao. Space is filled with meaning as
it is filled with Tao. Tao cannot be defined but it can be alluded to. Thus
the Tao Te Ching notes that the inner space of a jug is its essential part, not
the pottery, and that it is the space within four walls that comprises the
usefulness of a room. The purpose of Taoist meditation is to empty the
mind of all distracting thought and emotion so that it is more conducive to
quiescence and receptivity and better able to reflect on the Tao. In Indian
art, this is also the rasa of Shanta.
“The void is an extremely important part of my work. It ties into the Buddhist
thought and into Taoist thought because without emptiness you can’t have
the solid. Part of my learning and aesthetics is the displacement of space.
There is a form of elegance in displacing space and in leaving voids. It is a
methodology of space displacement.”
Most often when we appreciate a successful work of art we share its rasa - the
state of heightened sensation produced in the viewers mind by the emotion
and experience of the work itself. But with Zawitz’s work we can go even
further because we are the artist. We are responsible for the kinesthetic
action of creation and can take pleasure in both the instinctive, subliminal act
of creation itself and in the form that we create. It was while watching visitors
to his exhibition manipulate this art work and taking great pleasure in it that
Zawitz had an epiphany. He realized that this object could be accessible to
millions of people – like Enku and his thousands of wooden Buddha, but it
could do more. It could allow all of them to clear their minds, to find clarity
and serenity and to participate and interact with the both the process and the
product of sculpture. The work itself seems to foster multiple intelligences.
People with strong left-brain traits are drawn to the logical linearity of the
sculpture. People with right brain dominance appreciate its allusive qualities
and its ability to spark visualization, imagination and intuition. Manipulation
of the work seems to allow us to link the powers of both hemispheres.
In a book published in 2009, noted psychologist Dr Roland Rotz noted that
“Researchers have begun to discover we can improve our ability to process
information and generate novel ideas through movement, which varies and
enhances our point of view. Recent research on movement and the brain
suggests that small and large motor movements are critical for improved
In 1975 he made a tall elegant double spiral form that he called Column of
Infinity. He kept a model of this work in his studio and found that visitors
were drawn to it and fascinated by their ability to manipulate the elements
of the spiral into new and different shapes where every new shape was as
aesthetically pleasing as the last. From here Zawitz developed his line in
space. A line without beginning or end, solid yet supple, immutable yet
capable of constant change, a delight to both hand and eye that he called
Statue of Infinity. It was this work comprising a series of linked quarter-
round curves that can each be twisted around its central axis which was
commercialised as the Tangle.
Visual reality is transitory at the best of times as objects seen under natural
conditions change in appearance from moment to moment owing to
changes in light, atmosphere and the relative positions of object and viewer.
Zawitz’s line in space gives physical form to things seen only in the mind’s
eye. Together the interlinked curves allude to many things. They may be
a waterfall or the movement of water through a series of shallow rapids,
rushing around and tumbling over rocks. They may be clouds, tendrils of
vapour blown by the wind. These are powerful images that have important
associations in Taoism. Water is an important Taoist symbol, always taking
the path of least resistance, finding rest at the lowest point, making a level
surface over irregular depths, infinitely supple yet incomparably strong and
Left:StatueofInfinity, 1983(Photographer unknown)8'Hx4'W, stainless steel,Hyatt Macau.
Bottom:Infinitecolumn/Treeoflife, 197548"Hx6"W, walnut wood.
Top:Infinitybuild, Richard X Zawitz and Matteo Meglioli building an Infinite Man, Infinity gallery, Hong Kong
14 15
cognitive functions such as focusing, remembering and critical thinking.
Movement also plays an important role in improving emotions like pleasure
joy and contentment. For over two decades, Tangle Toys have challenged
and inspired adults and children to think creatively while imaging something
novel and unique. No matter how they interact with Tangles, my clients find
they provide an important sensory stimulant that helps their ability to focus
on the discussion at hand.”19
Zawitz’s sculpture employs what he describes as a “pure compound
curve, which is a curve coming from two positions – the front and the
side.” “Compound curves are groovy. They are beyond groovy, they are
wonderful. Who doesn’t love a compound curve? I am lucky I figured that
out because everyone does. Why? There are some things that are intrinsic
in the human brain that approves of and appreciates a curve. That is part
of my discovery. My parallel discovery was that vortexes, spirals, curves
and circles are in combination with nature which is science, and are in
combination with mankind which is all of art and culture. These are parallel
and concomitant with each other. My theory is that there is an intuitive or
intrinsic understanding of the curve in the human brain. It is an attraction.
If I was a scientist I would have empirical proof that I had happened onto
something. One hundred million versions of the tangle is a lot of laboratory
work that helps to prove my thesis.”
In documents filed with the US patent and trademark office in 1982, Zawitz’s
sculpture is described rather dryly as “an annular support device formed by a
series of identical torus segments with adjacent segments connected end-to-
end in a continuous loop.” As patent protection is only afforded to inventions
which have a utilitarian purpose, the documentation describes the sculpture
as a “manual diversion tranquilizer” and notes that “hand action coupled
with a low attention requirement is well known to have a tranquilizing effect.
Crocheting and whittling are traditional examples of diversion-relaxation
therapy. The present annular device provides a similar tension relief function.
Twisting the device is a simple, thoughtless procedure, which instantly
produces unlimited fascinating and unpredictable configurations. With each
twist of the segments, the device undergoes a chain-wide transformation
in silhouette and axis orientation without repetition. The device functions
as a mechanical or sculptural kaleidoscope, with a corresponding relaxing,
mesmeric characteristic.”20
“The continuous centre line of symmetry around the annular device insures
that each of the infinite random configurations will have a smooth and
graceful silhouette, which contributes to the relaxation of the user. The torus
section embodiments produce only continuous configurations free from
geometric or mathematical discontinuities (no infinite derivatives).
Bottom:Tangletoyandkeychain,plastic,The tangle has been used to promote a range of international companies.
Opposite:RichardZawitz’sfirstpatent,1985To date he has 20 pantents.
16 17
Zawitz sees his new monumental stainless steel pieces as part of an evolution.
“The work is contemporary but also futuristic. I believe that I have invented
a new paradigm aesthetically as well as a patented invention. So taking that
and having a narrow window to open that allows creativity without having
to spend years carving will open up innumerable creative possibilities. The
creativity is not going to rest but will self perpetuate. As a non-theory person
I am intuitive. My middle initial that was given to me is X, for experimental.”
“As someone willing to experiment I have no fear of building these sculptures
or showing them in a museum or any other formal setting. For a client in
Korea I have proposed a monumental Infinity sculpture that has 1.2 metre
diameter segments and is 50 metres high. I have allowed myself to dream
this large.”
Zawitz’s work and his methodology allow his public art clients an
unprecedented degree of participation in the creative process. In traditional
public art sculpture the role of the artist is to determine the form and to
capture it for his audience. Yet for Zawitz, everyone is an artist.
“In order to make the Infinity sculpture for the JW Marriott Hotel in Hong Kong
I knew the location where it was to be placed and I knew the parameters. I
specifically allowed spontaneity to find the shape. It took about eight minutes
to get there using a model and when if found it I loved it and just stopped.
As the tangle master I believe in myself and my abilities. But what makes an
artist? As everyone can manipulate a tangle into an artistic shape my job is
as facilitator. With the three dimensional modelling software now available
any client can manipulate the model into any configuration and when they
The annular device may be displayed as a stationary artistic sculpture without
change, and still have a desirable therapeutic effect. The flowing appearance
of the annular device contributes to a relaxing atmosphere.”
The mutability of the work invites the viewer to consider the evanescence
of life while its continuously flowing form suggests lightness, freedom and
the interconnectedness of all things. Zawitz explores in three dimensions
the expressive qualities of what Paul Klee famously called “taking a line for a
walk” when describing drawing. For further variation in the forms available,
it is possible to break the sculpture at any one of its joins, by simply pulling it
apart, and to tie an actual knot in the length before reforming the loop. The
geometrical possibilities of the sculpture are endless. In his work Zawitz sees
not just the interconnectedness of all things but also the double helix as the
building block of life or the cosmic spiral form of the galaxy.
There is also something organic about his dynamic, undulating, flowing
curvilinear forms that meshes well with his philosophy. “For the cultures
of Asia the forest has always been a teacher and the message of the forest
has been the message of interconnectedness and diversity, renewability and
sustainability, integrity and pluralism.” In some works Zawitz experiments
with crystal studded surfaces or brightly coloured highly textured spiky
surfaces that seem to belong to the animal kingdom. “The logic is threefold.
People are attracted to curves, the human brain loves colour as eye candy
and people love to touch. If I combine all of these things in one work it may
lead to more people liking it but this is not the reason why I build. I build
because of a need to create and if I am lucky enough to also please a big
audience then I feel as if I have won a certain kind of game.”
Left:MuseumtanglewithSwarovskielements, 2009(Photographer: Joan Boivin)Chrome plated plastic with 3,000 Swarovski elements.
Bottom:Rosemary,2009(Photographer unknown)famous model wearing Swarovski Tangle. Dragon Center Tangle Fashion show, Hong Kong.
Right:Infinity6.34,20099'Hx3'W, stainless steel, black granite, JW Mariott, Hong Kong
18 19
get to the shape they want they can stop, photograph it at that point, and
record the angle of twist from a notional centre line of every single segment.
The model can then be fabricated into a full size sculpture.”
“I love stainless steel. For me the choice of materials helps to define fine art
status. I could build an inflatable version that would be perfectly valid but
would not be considered fine art. You have to have boundaries somewhere.
Even though I believe in infinity I have fixed points in materials and in
aesthetics. The other thing I love about stainless steel is its timelessness.”
Just as his forms may evoke the ceaseless rippling movement of water,
so too do the reflective properties of stainless steel suggest the reflective
qualities of water. Zawitz is fascinated by surface and likes to focus on the
reflections which are subject to distortion across the whole convex surface.
The reflections act in counterpoint to the solidity of the physical sculpture.
On compound curves the complex reflections of their surroundings shift,
when you shift your focus, back to the solid object with an immutable logic.
The sense of fleeting motion and entanglement is captured and preserved
in an instant.
In his works Zawitz explores the nexus between being and nothingness and
captures temporary, transitional, ephemeral moments – the instant of time
between one state of being and another – which is after all, a metaphor
for life.
1 Chan Wing Tsit is author of a number of important texts including Chan Wing Tsit, A Sourcebook in Chinese Philosophy, Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1963; Laozi, The way of Lao Tzu (Tao-te ching); Translated with introductory essays, comments, and notes by Wing-tsit Chan, Bobbs Merrill, Indianapolis, 1963; Junjiro Takakusu, The essentials of Buddhist philosophy: Edited by Wing-tsit Chan and Charles A. Moore, Office Appliance Co, Honolulu, 1956.2 Philosophy East and West: A Quarterly of Comparative Philosophy has been published continuously by University of Hawaii Press since 1951. 3 Ananda K Coomaraswamy, The Transformation of Nature in Art, Dover, New York, 1934.4 Jacques Maritain, True Humanism; Translated by M. R. Adamson, Geoffrey Bles, London, 1939.5 Jacques Maritain, Creative Intuition in Art and Poetry, Harvill Press, London, 1954. This essay was first delivered at the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC in 1952 as the first of the AW Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts.6 Carl R. Hausman, “Maritain’s Interpretation of Creativity in Art”, Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, Vol. 19, No. 2 (Winter, 1960), pp. 215-219.7 Arthur Danto, Mysticism and Morality: Oriental Thought and Moral Philosophy, Basic Books, New York, 1972.8 For a detailed critique of Danto’s position see Robert Carter “Ethics as a Declaration of Interdependence”, Trumpeter, Vol. 9, No. 3, 1992, online at http://trumpeter.athabascau.ca/content/v9.3/carter.html9 From transcripts of conversations with the artist in Hong Kong on 25 November 2009. All subsequent direct quotes are from this same conversation.10 Mai Mai Sze, The Way of Chinese Painting, Its Ideas and Technique, With Selections from the Seventeenth Century Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting, Vintage Books, New York, 1959, pg. 17.11 Ibid., pg 428.12 Ibid., pg. 17.13 Ibid. pg 17.14 Huston Smith, The Illustrated World’s Religions, Harper Collins, New York, 1995, pg. 135.15 J. Hoffmeister, Wörterbuch der philosophischen Begriffe, Hamburg, 1955 cited by Sigfried Giedion, The Eternal Present: Volume 1, The Beginnings of Art, Bollingen Foundation, New York, 1962, pg. 12.16 Richard X Zawitz, Taoism and the Experience of Art, Unpublished University of Hawaii Thesis, Hawaii, 1971, pg. 3.17 Bert Winther Tamaki, Art in the Encounter of Nations: Japanese and American artists in the early postwar years, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 2001, pp. 66-89.18 Ibid. pg. 84.19 Richard X Zawitz and Mary Beth Spann, Learning with Tangle Brain Tools, Tangle Creations Inc, San Francisco, 2009, pg. xiv.20 United States Patent Number 4509929 at http://www.uspto.gov. A patent is a property right granted to an inventor that confers the right to exclude others from making, using or selling the invention. A utility patent may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or compositions of matters, or any new useful improvement thereof. The use must be specified in the application.21 Ibid.22 J Bandyopadhyay and Vandana Shiva, “Asia’s Forests, Asia’s Cultures” in Lessons of the Rainforest, Ed. Suzanne Head and Robert Heinzman, Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 1990
Opposite top:Audioforms,200935"Hx24"W, edition 1/1, chrome plated plastic, electronic components, Sony Corporation, Tokyo.
Opposite bottom:StatueofInfinity, 2001(Photographer: R X Zawitz)9'Hx9'W, stainless steel, laquered wood, Art Expo, Jacob Javits convention center
Below:Lucitestudyforbank,2011Three dimensional bank logo16"Hx8"Ø, lucite
20 21
The Versatility of Vision As a sculptor Richard X Zawitz developed his mature voice in the early 1980s.
He moved from the natural materials of stone and wood to mirrored stainless
steel, setting up a contrast between the fluidity of his forms and the solidity
of their substance as well as allowing the mirrored surfaces to suggest an
integration of the forms with their environments and embarked upon a
series of monumental works collectively entitled Infinity.
The compound curves that comprise the building blocks of his Infinity
sculptures may be configured into an infinite variety of combinations, forming
sculptures whose sinewy forms spiral upward, charged with potential energy,
or hug the ground as they meander from place to place. Their allusive
character conflate references from all world cultures, so that they strike a
chord in all who experience them
A wave may symbolise something passive, as in all those who let themselves
be borne away to wherever it may carry them, or may suggest something
open and illimitable or the tumult of violent action. Likewise a curve
simultaneously describes liberation and confinement, while a curl encloses
the signified within the signifying. Complex combinations of compound
curves represent the fundamental interconnectedness of all things and the
infinite possibilities which are the birthright of all mankind.
His work strikes a chord in science, as his models have been adopted by
molecular biologists as a tool in DNA modelling, and by physicists seeking
to describe cosmic string theory. It also has applications in education and
physical therapy. However, it is as public art that his work has the greatest
impact as both grand statements and functional objects with practical beauty.
Right:Tangleproteinmodels,2010Created by Professor Marcel Jaspars, Edinburgh University, Scotland
22 23
Infinity6.34.r9,200910'Hx48'W, stainless steel, granite, JW Marriott, Hong Kong
Infinity8.30,201012'Hx8'W, stainless steel, granite, USC Ronald Tutor Campus Center, California
24 25
StatueofInfinity8.20,200310'Hx8'W, stainless steel, Renaissance Harbour View Hotel, Hong Kong,
StatueofInfinity10.20,2004 10'Hx8'W, stainless steel, Jacob Javits Convention Center, temporary exhibit,California
26 27
InfiniteSteel,2005 10'Hx8'W, stainless steel, Mario Pelligrini estate, Montara, California
StatueofInfinityOne,19948'Hx6'W, stainless steel, Hong Kong Convention Center entrance, Hong Kong.
28 29
InfinityX1-66,2011 4'Hx10'L, stainless steel, Parc 66 mall,Jinan, China
InfinityX2-66,2011 4'Hx10'L, stainless steel, Parc 66 mall,Jinan, China
30 31
InfiniteMan,2012 6.6'Hx3.3'W,x3.3'D, stainless steel, Infinity Gallery, Hong Kong
InfiniteMan,2012 6.6'Hx3.3'W,x3.3'D, stainless steel, Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong
32 33
InfiniteWoman,2012 6.6'Hx3.3'W,x3.3'D, stainless steel, Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong
InfiniteGroup,2012 10'Hx11.5'Wx14.6'D, stainless steel, Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong
34 35
Conceptual Environments This section consists of computer rendered visualizations of Infinity Art
in actual backgrounds and is intended to inspire those interested in
eventualizing these creations.
Left: WireFrame,Infinite Man,2012.
Clockwise from top: InfinityHorseConcept,2012.
36 37
Infinity24.280,conceptual environment,Sydney, Australia,12'Hx400'W, concrete, mosaic tiles.
38 39
INFINITYSCULPTURE(2009)3.34 R9.5 1/8, Stainless Steel
StatueofRings,conceptual environment,Interior,12'Hx6'W, stainless steel, granite.
Infinity6.32,conceptual environment,Interior,10'Hx6'W, stainless steel.
40 41
Infinity12.128t,conceptual environment, The City of Arts and Sciences, Valencia, Spain,48'Hx60'W, stainless steel.
InfinityFountain12.30,conceptual environment, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, 15'Hx10'W, stainless steel.
42 43
SpiritofPeace,conceptual environment Istanbul,75'Hx60'W, bronze.
InfinityFountain18.96,conceptual environment,Water feature98'Hx24'W, stainless steel, granite, water.
44 45
Infinity8.36,conceptual environment, 10'Hx8'W, stainless steel,One Island South,Aberdeen, Hong Kong
InfiniteFourPartsUniverse,conceptual environment,Vatican City,200'Hx200'W, stainless steel.
46 47
StatueofInfinity,GatewaytoWest,conceptual environment,San Francisco harbour entrance, San Francisco,275'Hx96'W, metal alloy.
48 49
InfinityandTao,conceptual environment,2012, July 23rd-29thOne Man Show,Oval Atrium, ifc mall,Hong Kong
50 51
Awakening Perception In his earliest work in wood and stone, Richard Zawitz explored the complex
array of images and objects that served to remind and support the essential
teachings of Buddhism, Taoism, Shinto and the other Eastern religions and
philosophies that he was learning at that time. In works such as Daruma
Torso (1972) or Guardian Torso (Date) he sought to express notions of an
idealised figure. Other works such as India (Date) or Daruma (Date) present
the Buddha in a more transcendent way, far from the earthly realm and
closer to a heavenly sphere.
In later works he sought to deconstruct solid forms into primal organic
elements. In works such as Flying Stone (Date), Mind Over Matter (Date)
and Cosmic Stone (Date) he used stone to capture the fizz and spark of
effervescence – the moment of transition when gas is freed from an aqueous
solution. These works appear like rafts of bubbles, held together by surface
tension. In fact they have been laboriously carved out of alabaster. Their
combination of spherical forms allude to problems of space - just as bubbles
have the smallest possible surface area for any given volume and will always
find the smallest surface area between points or edges.
But it was in Tibet that he had his epiphany. It was here that he encountered
the Tibetan Infinite Knot, the pattern of interwoven lines without beginning
or end that is a symbol of infinite life and creation. The Tibetan Infinite Knot
is a symbol of endless, flowing spirit and wisdom. At this moment Zawitz
began to imagine a knot with no beginning and no end that could twist, turn
and change into various shapes, but never lose its essential character. The
Tibetan Infinite Knot captivated and inspired him and led him to explore
curvilinear forms representing themes of infinity, rebirth and universal
harmony. It was this symbol that led him to the realization that he could take
his First Twist beyond its first turn and on into infinity.
Above:Infinityscroll,197360"Hx30"W, ink on paper.
Right: woodstudies,2008, Teak and Cypress.
Left: RichardXZawitz,1969Self portrait, Hawaii.
52 53
Cosmicstone,198924"Wx18"Hx18"L, edition 1/1,alabaster, glass beads, rosewood.
Guardianfigurebust,1973 18"Hx12"Wx6"D, Cypress wood.
54 55
AlienBuddha,1997-20048'Hx6'Wx3'D,Picasso marble, wood, stainless steel.
Flyingstone199124"Wx12"Lx18"H, edition 1/1, Alabaster.
56 57
Torso,197048"Hx24"x14"D,Serpentine and pine.
Infinitecolumn/Treeoflife, 197548"Hx6"W, walnut wood.
58 59
Tangled Creations
India,19714'Hx12"W, koa wood, marble.
Mindovermatter199036"Wx16"Hx10"D, edition 1/1,alabaster, acrylic, teak.
60 61
PreBuddhisticBuddha,197112"Hx5"W, bronze, plastic fly, wooden antique. China
HubertIMungus,19756'Hx20"W, wood charred patina.
62 63
Tangle Creations In museum shops everywhere we can see examples of how art is merchandised
in order to provide visitors with an enduring memento of their experience
of art. Well known images of works from the collection are reproduced
on everything from tea towels to coffee cups. The beauty of the tea towel
or cup is thus enhanced, but the tea towel or cup is not itself transformed
into an art object. The towel or cup retains its base character and the art is
reduced to mere decoration. Richard Zawitz’s Tangle is different. The Tangle
can be merchandised, and has been merchandised in more than 100 million
editions and adapted into a range of entirely new applications without ever
losing its essential qualities as an art object. As such, it is arguably one of the
most successful art objects ever made.
Some adaptations relate just to the surface finish. When coated in crystals in
either solid or broken colours the work functions as jewellery or adornment.
When coated in felt or in soft spiky finishes the work offers users a range of
very different tactile experiences. At other times the surface finish provides
a platform for branding messages. To date dozens of global corporations
including Coca Cola, McDonalds and Kellogs have used Tangles in order to
help identify them as a creative company.
Other applications are more adaptive. When sheets of clear or coloured
methacrylate are slung across the notional planes between the curves, the
result is a line of sculpture-based furniture. The Infinity Furniture collection
was developed by Zawitz in collaboration with Pierandrei Associati in Milan.
The first two armchairs in the series were launched at the Salone D’Mobili in
Milan in 2008. The same design collaboration resulted in a lighting fixture
that is now produced by Tecnodelta. A desk lamp known as the Tangle Lamp
allows users to twist and manipulate the arms of the lamp in order to put the
light wherever it is wanted. The contours and lines of the arms have all of the
flexibility of the original Tangle but from a solid base.
Tangle Creations is now a multi-faceted content, product development,
and distribution company for Tangle-related products and concepts,
with products in the toy, electronic, therapy, pet, inflatable, educational,
premium, promotional and sports sectors. This extraordinarily broad range
of adaptations demonstrates the true versatility of Richard X Zawitz’s vision.
Top and above:TangleCreationsIdentity,www.tanglecreations.com
Left:Infinityalpha4.16,20086'Hx4'D, stainless steel, acrylic.
64 65
Infinitylight,20088'Hx8'W, aluminum, lighting components, Baci Abbracci flagship store, Milan.
MuseumchrometangleandMichaelJackson,2008 (March)Italia Vogue magazine cover.
66 67
Infinitybeta4.16,200836"Hx40"W, stainless steel, acrylic, design collaboration with Pierandre Associati Milan.
Infinityalpha4.16,2008 6'Hx4'D, stainless steel, acrylic, design collaboration with Pierandre Associati Milan.
68 69
MuseumchrometangleonthesetofSpyKids4movie.2010
Infinity4.20,200936"Hx30"W, stainless steel, 36,000 Swarovski elements.
70 71
Left from top:ZenBlingRXZseriesX001, TangleRocketball, TangleMatrixAirlessBall.2010
Right:TangleDNASoundSpeakers.2005
Bottom:TangleLamp.1999
72 73
Clockwise from top left:TangleNeonSparkle,1981. TangleHairy,2010.SpikedBlingTangle,2009.TangleTherapy,2004.
Opposite clockwise from top right:TangleOriginalChrome,1981.TangleJrTriColorMetallic,1981.LearningwithTangleBrainToolsBook,2004.
74 75
Left from top:TangleTherapy, TangleJrFuzzies.
Opposite Right from top:TangleHairy, TangleBling.
Left from top:InfinityArtMiniatures,SeriesX1withSwarovskiElements,2012.
76 77
Infinity Gallery San Francisco
San Francisco,385 Oyster Point Road,South San Francisco,USA
Left:LoftstudioinInfinitygallery,1975San Francisco, USA.
Middle:Zawitzrocklift,30 pound rock.
78 79
Infinity Gallery Hong Kong
Left:Zawitzsitting,(Photographer: Joan Boivin)2012, Infinity gallery, Hong Kong.
The Infinity Gallery Hong Kong is located in The Factory, a loft conversion
studio at the southside of Hong Kong.
Infinity Gallery Hong Kong
Suite 4, 9th Floor, The Factory
1 Yip Fat Street, Aberdeen
80 81
Curriculum Vitae Born Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USAUniversity of PittsburghUniversity of Hawaii, Major in Fine Art Sculpture, Minor Asian Art History and Asian PhilosophyTravel and study in Japan, Thailand, India, Nepal, Tibet
Solo Exhibitions
“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Hawaii Art Centre, Hawaii, USA“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Hawaii Art Centre, Hawaii, USA“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Hawaii Art Centre, Hawaii, USA“Tantric Art in Thailand”, Bangkok Cultural Centre, Bangkok, Thailand“Zen Sculpture”, Berlin Fine Art Gallery, Berlin, Germany“Richard Zawitz: Asia Meets the West”, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong“East Meets West: The Taoist Art of Richard Zawitz”, Plum Blossoms Gallery, New York, USA“Richard Zawitz: Sculpture”, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong
Group Exhibitions
“Name of Exhibition”, Honolulu Academy of Art Museum, Hawaii, USA“American Sculptors”, Boston University Fine Arts Centre, Massachusetts, USA“West Coast Sculptors”, San Francisco Embarcadero Art Centre, California, USA“Two Asia Sculptors”, Two man show with Wu Tsai Shang, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong“The American Sculptor in Hawaii” Honolulu Academy of Art, Hawaii, USA“San Francisco Sculptors”, San Francisco Museum of Fine Art, California, USA“Group Show”, Grand Hyatt Hotel, Hong Kong“Asia and America”, Pittsburgh Cultural Centre, Pennsylvania, USA
Commissions / Placements
“Untitled”, Cor Ten Steel, University of Pittsburgh Campus, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA“Untitled”, Stainless Steel, Boston University Campus, Boston, Massachusetts, USA“Untitled”, Stainless Steel, Granite, Bank of America, San Francisco, California, USA“Untitled” Stainless Steel, Hyatt Hotel, Chicago, Illinois, USA“Untitled” Stainless Steel, Hyatt Hotel, Taipa, Macau“Untitled”, Stainless Steel, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Renaissance Hotel Harbour View, Hong Kong“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Mario Pelligrini Residence, Montara, California, USA“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Poly Concept Corporation, Paris, France“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, JW Marriott Hong Kong, Hong Kong“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Ronald Tutor Campus Centre, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA “Infinity Z1-66”, Stainless Steel, Parc 66 mall, Jinan, China“Richard X Zawitz, Infinity and Tao, One Man Show", Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong
19461967 - 19681969 - 19721972 - 1975
196819701971197219741985199019911995
19721975198019972000200120022006
19681975197819811983198420032005200720092010
20112012
Left:AlienBuddha,1997-20048'Hx6'Wx3'D, Picasso marble, wood, stainless steel.
82 83
Global News Media and Richard X Zawitz Global News Media and Richard X Zawitz
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Global News Media and Richard X Zawitz
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Tangled Creations
INFINITYSCULPTURE(2009)3.34 R9.5 1/8, Stainless Steel
INFINITYSCULPTURE(2009)3.34 R9.5 1/8, Stainless Steel