A new study of Ibram Lassaw’s wearable sculptures in conjunction with an exhibition at the Figge Art Museum. 

Remembered as a pioneering and prolific Abstract Expressionist artist of otherworldly sculptures, Ibram Lassaw (1913–2003) is less well-known for his wearable sculptures. Like his large-scale works, the “Bosom Sculptures,” with their innovative use of alloys, were inspired by Lassaw’s readings on such varied topics as Zen Buddhism, cosmology, and quantum physics. Lassaw’s welded and brazed necklaces, though simple in design, remind us of everything from sea anemones to nebulae with their elaborate biomorphic tendrils and interconnected clusters.

Published to coincide with an exhibition at Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa, Quanta of Space: The Bosom Sculpture of Ibram Lassaw features thirty-seven unique pendants and necklaces alongside nine full-size sculptures that Lassaw created between 1938 and 1996. Supplemental essays by Nancy G. Heller, Denise Lassaw, and Marin R. Sullivan offer insight into his life and times and illustrate Lassaw’s contribution to Modernist studio jewelry.