Wrapped Light 32

Howard Ben Tré, Wrapped Light 3/2, 2008, cast glass, gold leaf, metal, pigmented waxes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Wendy MacGaw, 2021.42
Howard Ben Tré, Wrapped Light 3/2, 2008, cast glass, gold leaf, metal, pigmented waxes, footprint: 5 14 in. (13.3 cm) overall: 22 34 × 8 14 in. (57.8 × 21 cm) weight: 35.8 lb. (16.2 kg), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Wendy MacGaw, 2021.42

Artwork Details

Title
Wrapped Light 32
Date
2008
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
footprint: 5 14 in. (13.3 cm) overall: 22 34 × 8 14 in. (57.8 × 21 cm) weight: 35.8 lb. (16.2 kg)
Credit Line
Gift of Wendy MacGaw
Mediums
Mediums Description
cast glass, gold leaf, metal, pigmented waxes
Subjects
  • Abstract
Object Number
2021.42

Artwork Description

Howard Ben Tré’s Wrapped Light seemingly transcends time and space. Light diffuses through a column of semiopaque glass and gold-leaf surface, casting a transfixing glow—an allusion to the mystery of life beyond the ordinary. Ben Tré achieves this effect by pouring molten glass into molds, a process he engineered in the late 1970s. 

This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World, 2022

Works by this artist (4 items)

Howard Ben Tré, First Vase, 1989, glass, gold leaf, patina, adhesive, and lead, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the James Renwick Alliance and museum purchase made possible by the Smithsonian Institution Collections Acquisition Program, 1990.52
First Vase
Date1989
glass, gold leaf, patina, adhesive, and lead
Not on view
Howard Ben Tré, Cast Form Type VII (1179), 1979, glass, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Elmerina and Paul Parkman, 2002.73.2, © 1981?, Howard Ben Tre
Cast Form Type VII (1179)
Date1979
glass
Not on view
Howard Ben Tré, Wrapped Light 3/2, 2008, cast glass, gold leaf, metal, pigmented waxes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Wendy MacGaw, 2021.42
Wrapped Light 32
Date2008
cast glass, gold leaf, metal, pigmented waxes
Not on view