(born in Lollar, Hessen in 1931)
Zig-Zag-Stele, 1966, aluminum, plexiglass,
189 x 28 x 9 cm on plexiglass plinth (42 x 30 x 8 cm)

Literature:
Dieter Honisch, Heinz Mack, Skulpturen 1953–1986, Mönchengladbach 1987, no. 56/56A, p. 90 (ill. no. 57)

Provenance:
F. Meyers Collection, Mönchengladbach
Private Collection, North Rhine-Westphalia

The combination of light and movement is characteristic of Heinz Mack‘s sculptural works. „The spectrum of sculptures is extremely comprehensive and versatile. The stele is the earliest group of works within the sculptural oeuvre. On the one hand, it attempts visual transformation through light. On the other hand, the stele concretises the space and thus becomes the energetic centre of it.“ (Heinz Mack. Skulptur, 22.04.2021)

The work from 1966 is a stele. The stele consists of a bent piece of aluminium that is attached to the transparent plexiglass box with a thin wire. The material used, aluminium, was primarily used in the aerospace industry at the time the work was created. It reflects the light and mirrors the changing light conditions depending on the position of the sun and the weather conditions. Due to the folding of the parallel individual zones within the piece, the light is reflected differently. In addition, the entire surface is embossed, creating a relief character. The surroundings are reflected in the material, thus blurring the boundary between object and interior space.

Heinz Mack himself says about his works, “My sculptures are new objects in space, reflectors of light and instruments of movement. In their rhythmic structures movement becomes visible.” (Dieter Honisch, Mack-Skulpturen 1953-1986, Dusseldorf 1986, p. 44) Making light and movement physically tangible is also the primary goal of the Zig Zag Stele. It unites the inside and the outside into a whole and serves directly as a medium that vividly brings the changing light conditions into appearance.