JO-SO
1960
JO SO is a landmark sculpture by John Chamberlain executed in 1960, during the pivotal early period of his career when he pioneered the use of crushed and welded salvaged automobile parts as a fine art medium. The work presents a dynamic, asymmetrical mass of compressed metal panels and curling steel fragments in a rich palette of sage green, red, mustard yellow, cream, and dark grey, mounted on a wooden plinth with a chrome band. Chamberlain's process of compressing and interlocking industrial detritus produces a gestural energy that invites comparison to Abstract Expressionist painting translated into three dimensions. With a distinguished provenance spanning Martha Jackson Gallery, multiple Christie's sales, and Mnuchin Gallery, this work represents a superb example of one of the most significant sculptural innovations of the postwar era.
- Medium
- Painted steel
- Dimensions
- Location
- Sotheby's, New York, NY
- List Price
- $1,984,000
- Spotted At
- Auction House · Sotheby'sView on map
Notes
Sotheby's Auction Recap document. All-in price of 1,984,000 USD. Work executed in 1960. Sculpture mounted on a wooden plinth with chrome band.
Collectors of John Chamberlain
Also spotted by
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César Baldaccini
French · b. 1921
César's famous Compressions series involved crushing entire automobiles into dense geometric blocks of compacted painted metal, sharing Chamberlain's core gesture of transforming industrial automotive material into expressive sculpture through mechanical compression and the retention of original factory colors.
Mark di Suvero
American · b. 1933
Working in the same early 1960s moment, di Suvero assembled and welded salvaged industrial steel into raw asymmetrical sculptural masses that share Chamberlain's gestural energy and Abstract Expressionist sensibility translated directly into three dimensional painted metal form.
Richard Stankiewicz
American · b. 1922
Stankiewicz was a pioneering junk sculptor who welded discarded industrial and mechanical steel fragments into expressive sculptural compositions, working contemporaneously with Chamberlain and sharing the same fundamental approach of elevating salvaged metal detritus into fine art through assemblage and welding.
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