
Copper Passage, c. 2013
Mary Giles
Waxed linen, hammered copper, fine iron wire
Gift of Jim Harris 2019.5.22a,b
On View in Gallery 281
“Copper Passage” is a superb example of Mary Giles’s “boulders”—a type of closed, sculptural basket for which she became known. She started making boulder sculptures in 1999 after having work done on her Stillwater, Minnesota, home, which rested on a cluster of boulders. When workers excavated the large rocks, one broke in half. Giles was captivated by the split rock, and how the color of its “skin” contrasted with its core. Through a mass of iron and copper elements one catches glimpses of the coiled basket structure that lies beneath.
Image: In Copyright. Gift of Jim Harris