Albert Vrana (1921–1994)
was an American sculptor who is best known for his mid-twentieth century monumental
architectural sculpture
Architectural sculpture is the use of sculptural techniques by an architect and/or sculptor in the design of a building, bridge, mausoleum or other such project. The sculpture is usually integrated with the structure, but freestanding works that ...
s done in the
Modernist style
Modern architecture, also called modernist architecture, or the modern movement, is an architectural movement and style that was prominent in the 20th century, between the earlier Art Deco and later postmodern movements. Modern architecture wa ...
, using novel materials, such as
ferrocement
Ferrocement or ferro-cement is a system of construction using reinforced mortar or plaster (lime or cement, sand, and water) applied over an "armature" of metal mesh, woven, expanded metal, or metal-fibers, and closely spaced thin steel rod ...
, and new techniques, such as
sand casting
Sand casting, also known as sand molded casting, is a metal casting process characterized by using sand—known as ''casting sand''—as the mold material. The term "sand casting" can also refer to an object produced via the sand casting proces ...
using plastic
Styrofoam
Styrofoam is a brand of closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam (XPS), manufactured to provide continuous building insulation board used in walls, roofs, and foundations as thermal insulation and as a water barrier. This material is light blue in ...
molds to shape sculptural concrete panels and
metal sculptures
A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. These properties are all associated with having electrons available at the Fermi level, as against non ...
.
Career
Much of his work was commissioned at a time when quality sculpture in front of a building was the sign of a prestige property, according to Vrana,
and many of his sculptures are located in
outdoor settings, primarily in Florida and the
American Southeast
The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and the southern portion of the Eastern Uni ...
.
His sculptural forms are integrated with the shape of the built environment where they were to be set,
such as residential complexes, government office parks, university campuses, etc.
Although many of his pieces were
Modernist
Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
, he considered his approach to be traditional; much of his work was "integrated as part of the structure and related to the specific building in both design and materials, in harmony, not conflict, with the architecture".
This approach has had resonance with the current interest in creating, producing and installing
site specific art.
Paul Zarinski, noted artist, author and
emeritus professor
''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus".
In some c ...
of art at the
University of Connecticut
The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...
, makes note of Vrana's esthetic in the shaping of three-dimensional space and its integration with the built environment and especially Vrana's ability to form connections between design "professions such as architectural engineering and industrial design and the three-dimensional art and design". His work and its composition with regard to structures, with modular units and repetition, and with bas-relief is considered "both sculpture and structure"—especially in the six-story Professional Arts Building in Miami which consists of 200 pre-cast wall panels made with Lehigh cement which has been described as "the world's largest non-repetitive concrete
bas relief
Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
". His work has been compared to that of
Le Corbusier
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , ; ), was a Swiss-French architectural designer, painter, urban planner and writer, who was one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture ...
,
Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie (; born July 14, 1938) is an architect, urban planner, educator, theorist, and author. He is well known for incorporating principles of socially responsible design throughout his six-decade career. His projects include cultural, ed ...
,
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright Sr. (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed List of Frank Lloyd Wright works, more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key ...
and
Buckminster Fuller
Richard Buckminster Fuller (; July 12, 1895 – July 1, 1983) was an American architect, systems theorist, writer, designer, inventor, philosopher, and futurist. He styled his name as R. Buckminster Fuller in his writings, publishing more t ...
for its repetitive use of modular units, while his work with
relief carving
In wood carving relief carving is a type in which figures or patterns are carved in a flat panel of wood; the same term is also used for carving in stone, ivory carving and various other materials. The figures project only slightly from the bac ...
s is considered along with that of
Louise Nevelson
Louise Nevelson (September 23, 1899 – April 17, 1988) was an American sculptor known for her monumental, monochromatic, wooden wall pieces and outdoor sculptures. Born in the Poltava Governorate of the Russian Empire (present-day Kyiv Oblast, ...
in art and architecture books.
Art historian Kenneth Donahue, second Director of the
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Page Museum).
LACMA was founded in 1961 ...
, noted that Vrana is unceasing in his investigation of space mass relations in both his monumental works and his small sculptures using new materials and techniques, some which he developed himself, to achieve a "fusion of sculpture and architecture in a manner rarely accomplished since the Baroque era".
Notable works
Free standing sculptures
His free-standing "Obelisk" is a 50-ton, 60-foot high sculpture in bronze and
ferrocement
Ferrocement or ferro-cement is a system of construction using reinforced mortar or plaster (lime or cement, sand, and water) applied over an "armature" of metal mesh, woven, expanded metal, or metal-fibers, and closely spaced thin steel rod ...
.
According to Vrana "the sculptural forms which are cantilevered off the
obelisk
An obelisk (; , diminutive of (') ' spit, nail, pointed pillar') is a tall, slender, tapered monument with four sides and a pyramidal or pyramidion top. Originally constructed by Ancient Egyptians and called ''tekhenu'', the Greeks used th ...
are stylized or abstract human forms, which relate to various artistic endeavors. A viewer can, with a moment of meditation, feel the association. This requires him to participate in the conception.".
The Obelisk is located within the Arlen House residential complex located in the city of
Sunny Isles Beach, Florida
Sunny Isles Beach (SIB or more commonly Sunny Isles, and officially the City of Sunny Isles Beach) is a city located on a barrier island in northeast Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The city is part of the Miami metropolitan area of So ...
. The sculpture is located in front of the Arlen House originally built as a luxury rental property in the 1960s, and now a condominium.
Built as part of a luxury residential property, "Day and Night" (1964) located at the Alfred Browning Parker House in
Coral Gables, Florida
Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The city is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida and is located southwest of Greater Downtown Miami, Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...
, consisted of a pair of pieces by two artists, with Vrana's sleeping man forming the Night portion.
Architectural sculpture
“The Story of Man" which forms the outside walls of the
Rotunda
A rotunda () is any roofed building with a circular ground plan, and sometimes covered by a dome. It may also refer to a round room within a building (an example being the one below the dome of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.). ...
at what was originally the
Public Library
A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...
in
Miami Beach
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean an ...
—now a structure that is part of the
Bass Museum
The Bass Museum of Art is a contemporary art museum located in Miami Beach, Florida. The Bass Museum of Art was founded in 1963 and opened in 1964.
History Early years
John Bass (1891–1978) and Johanna Redlich (m. February 21, 1921) were Je ...
in
Miami Beach
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean an ...
—consists of sand-cast sculptured architectural panels that form the supporting walls of the building, as illustrated when the steps used in the building technique were documented by the
Miami Beach
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean an ...
City Clerk
A clerk (pronounced "clark" /klɑːk/ in British and Australian English) is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in ma ...
in a series of photographs taken as the work progressed in the 1960s.
Vrana was commissioned to create "Las Cuatro Razas" the sculptured mural that forms the façade of the
Charles E. Perry Building at
Florida International University
Florida International University (FIU) is a public research university with its main campus in Westchester, Florida, United States. Founded in 1965 by the Florida Legislature, the school opened to students in 1972. FIU is the third-largest univ ...
in Miami and is intended to reflect that university's ethos of providing quality education to meet the needs of the diversity of Floridians
Other notable works include the "Evolution of Government" located at the
Federal Building
A federal building is a building housing local offices of various government departments and agencies in countries with a federal system, especially when the central government is referred to as the "federal government
A federation (als ...
,
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
.
See also
Further images of Vrana's ''"Evolution of Government"'' at Wikimedia Commons
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vrana, Albert
1921 births
1994 deaths
20th-century American sculptors
20th-century American male artists
American male sculptors