Chromatic Modernism (Blue, Red, Yellow)

Josiah McElheny draws inspiration from the roles of designers, artists, and architects within the history of modernism, using his work to highlight and recontextualize innovations that are not widely known or recognized.

The support system for McElheny’s Chromatic Modernism (Blue, Yellow, Red) is modeled after a modular rod display system first implemented by Francesco Ruscone during the 1951 Milan Triennial design exhibition. McElheny sees this display system as the pinnacle of modern design and made a replica, which he outfitted with glass panels and arranged within it a selection of glass objects in blue, yellow and red. An expert glassblower, McElheny hand-fabricated the vessels on display, whose designs are based on mid-century Czech, Italian, and Scandinavian glassware. In his novel assemblages of metal and exquisitely crafted glass, McElheny strikes a contrast between mass production and the handmade.