Tangled Creations

RICHARDXZAWITZ

Nothing is out of the questionthe way I live my life.I'm always thinking about creating.My future starts when I wake upevery morning,that's when it starts...when I wake up and see the first light.Then I'm grateful..."

- Miles Davis

"

Contents 1 ArtistStatement

5 RichardXZawitzandtheExperienceofArt

21 TheVersatilityofVision

35 ConceptualEnvironments

53 AwakeningPerception

65 TangleCreations

79 InfinityGalleries

83 CurriculumVitae

84 GlobalNewsMediaandRichardXZawitz

Copyright © 2010 Richard X Zawitz

First published in Hong Kong in 2010 by Richard X Zawitz

This edition published in 2012 by Richard X Zawitz

Infinity Gallery

385 Oyster Point Road

South San Francisco, 94080

USA

T(USA): +650 616 7900

T(HK): +852 2865 1853

E: rz@tanglecreations.com

W: www.richardxzawitz.com

W: www.tanglecreations.com

W: www.tangletherapy.com

Text by Jonathan Thomson

Designed and Art Directed by Andrew McWalters

Conceptual environments by Madison Lee

Printed by Lammar Offset Printing Ltd, Hong Kong

ISBN 978-0-615-42979-3

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including

photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without prior written permission from the publisher.

1

Artist Statement I dedicate this book to Creativity as the raison d’être for my being and

existence.

My work since the late 1960s has been devoted to the essences and energies

which first became manifest to me through Chinese Taoism and then

through the entire alchemical pantheon of the form and formlessness of

Asian philosophy and metaphysics. With the good fortune of history (and

in particular the mind freedom, revolution and counter culture movements

of the mid 1960s) matching my in-born urges, I was also able to unlearn the

western bias toward aesthetics and the arts. Thus, as a natural born three-

dimensional plus-ist, I chose sculpture to be the medium for my art.

At the Art Department of the University of Hawaii I was mentored by an

esteemed scholar from India, Professor Prithwish Neogy. In our one-on-one

sessions as master and pupil, I was assigned a variety of projects from looking

for specific lava rocks to carve, to meditation and the study of Zen painting

and reading other scholars, including Jacques Maritain, D.T. Suzuki and of

course Neogy’s own mentor Ananda Coomaraswamy. During this period

I learned about many things including the ancient Indian concept of Rasa

which then became an important focus of my own aesthetic. Rasa is the

complete immersion of the individual with art and with the tradition of the

art. My understanding of Rasa in combination with the study of Asian art

history and philosophy influenced me in many profound ways and I have ever

since attempted to manifest this sculpturally.

I believe there are key periods in the course of an individual artist or seeker’s

life that are influential in the shaping of that life just as there are key periods

in history that are influential in shaping cultures and civilizations. The 1960s

was the right place for me and the right time to both learn and un-learn. For

me it was a once in a lifetime transformational period and I have carried the

benefit of that experience with me ever since. In his book “Iconoclast” the

neuroscientist Gregory Berns describes how innovators are able to unlock

their creative potential. Like them, I have no fear of change.

After my graduation in 1972 Professor Neogy recommended that I go to

Japan to study with his great friend the renowned Zen painter Morita Shiryu,

and with the local carvers who make Buddha sculptures in wood. I spent

one year in Kyoto which at that time was a crossroads of creativity where

Westerners like me were able to meet and embrace the essences and

energies of the East and art.

My studies and experiences led me to hypothesise the existence of one

essential particle of matter which in turn led to my discovery of the “Tangle

Particle” which manifests itself in two distinct and parallel ways and is

Top: Themotherofallthings,Lava stone, 1970

Above: Zawitzresidence,c. 1972Kyoto Jisho In Karasuma dori.

Left: Zawitzholding"LightofInfinity",2010(Photographer: Joan Boivin)Infinity studio, Hong Kong.

2 3

explained through science and humanism. The essential manifestation of

the “Tangle Particle” is as a spiral, wave, curve, circle or arc. In nature and

science it is found in galaxies, proteins, light waves, sound waves, hurricanes,

cyclones, the growth patterns of all manner of fauna and flora, and in every

culture’s art and design (think Van Gogh Sun Flowers and Starry Nights, and

every type of painting (including body art) or textile design which uses knots,

curves, spirals, waves or circles). Make your own observations someday, you

will amazed.

The images you will see in this book are my Tao. My Tao manifests it’s oneness

through the multiplicity of entities that I have created and which I think have

in some small way may have benefited humanity. Wherever these works are

placed, I can promise an emission of positive energy into the environment. I

do not think it is enough to just displace space with so-called art or sculpture;

instead, one must strive to reach the people who will experience the art. In

a world of negativity I try to provoke happiness and well-being. My mission

is Peace Through Creativity.

In this book you will see examples of work from every period of my life.

Alien Buddha is a stone, wood and stainless steel mixed work, that took

a painstakingly long time to make, but was as a result more rewarding to

complete. The stone I used is called “Picasso Marble” and it was a joy to

work with. It is very hard, and contains curving streaks. As a sculptor, my

job was to find and depict them in much the same way that a painter builds

an image using line and tone. My later sculptures include Infinity 634, a site

specific work that was commissioned by the JW Marriott hotel in Hong Kong

in 2009 for the hotel lobby. The exact positioning of this work completes a

near perfect environment for positive energy with glass, water, wood, stone,

plants and people.

My small sculpture called “Tangle” has sold more than 100 million

copyrighted editions globally, and is used for everything from play to therapy

and has educational uses as well as offering pure aesthetic pleasure. My

series of large scale sculptures called “Infinity” that are made in stainless

steel and other related materials are another attempt to represent the Tao in

a three dimensional-plus form. I think people engage with these works both

through their visual elegance and their unseen energies. The Tangle Particle

is also versatile enough to be applied to functional things including lamps,

constructions toys, sculpture as furniture, and stereo speakers.

My work also includes virtual sculpture that helps me to visualize how my

physical sculpture would appear in a variety of environments. The virtual

world allows me to think and plan on a massive scale. These monumental

works are akin to landmark architecture in scale but have no function other

than enhancing the amenity of the environment through a universal aesthetic

and generating generous flows of positive energy.

The overall purpose of the book is to enlighten and amuse the mind and the

senses. I am a true believer in creativity as the purpose of life and the reason

why we are all here. I think that all of the great cultural occurrences that

are known in recorded history, from the founding of religions through to the

development cultures and entire civilizations, are founded on man’s basic

urge to create.

There are three aspects to life – the physical, intellectual and the spiritual as

in the world of things, the world of thought and the world of feelings. Some

of these are present in all forms of life but it is only in man that all three come

together in body, mind and spirit. It is the combination of all three that gives

us the capacity to believe, to reason and to create. The traditional hierarchy

of man’s needs is based on a solid platform of physiological needs with safety,

love and belonging, esteem and self actualisation in ascending order above

them. I believe that creativity, and the drive to become everything that one

is capable of becoming, is in fact a basic need that must be met or there will

be an imbalance in nature. I see the lack of balance in global affairs and

the general shift towards a negative environment as evidence of this and

therefore believe that the need to create, and facilitate creativity, is greater

than ever.

I want to thank Jonathan Thomson for his kindness and wisdom to curate my

work and mastermind this book and Andrew McWalters for his creative skills

and art direction. I would also like to thank my family and dedicated wife

Kanya and children Nick and Aimee, and my grandson Charlie. Gosh knows I

would be living in a cave somewhere without them…..

I wish everyone who reads this book creativity and wellness and invite you

the reader to project that creativity and wellness both outward and inward.

Very sincerely,

Below: AlienBuddha,1997-2004(Photographer: Joan Boivin)6'Hx4'W, Picasso marble, stainless steel.

Bottom: Infinitybeta4.16,200836"Hx40"W, stainless steel, acrylic.

Opposite: Buddhascroll,197260"Hx30"W, ink on paper.

4 5

Richard X Zawitz and the Experience of Art In the 1960s and 1970s a great many young people from the West travelled

to the East seeking the enlightenment they believed could be found in

Eastern religions and cultures. The “Hippie Trail” is now the stuff of legends

for today’s independent travellers. The reality of what it was actually like

may now be exaggerated, but it is true to say that many travellers on the trail

did have inspiring, life-changing spiritual experiences. One such traveller was

the American sculptor Richard Zawitz.

Zawitz is today best known as the inventor of the Tangle, a hand-held

executive toy that consists of a series of quarter round sections of tubing,

either in plastic or stainless steel that are joined end to end so that each

piece can swivel. The loop thus formed can be manipulated to form an array

of different sinuous shapes. Zawitz’s work is extraordinarily allusive. It is

an art object of simple beauty that is capable of conveying an extraordinary

range of emotions and free associations. The work’s sweeping twisting lines

and fluid wanderings are like rolling vapours made solid. For Zawitz, the

twists and turns have an organic quality, and mark a nexus between coherent

patterns of flow and the discordance of turbidity, the point where vortices,

eddies and ripples emerge out of chaos.

By some measures, Zawitz’s Tangle may be one of the most successful art

objects ever made with more than one hundred million editions currently in

circulation. Now reborn as sculpture on a monumental scale, all with the title

Infinity (and a unique reference number) his work is able to touch and inspire

even more people as it transforms public spaces into havens of spiritual

tranquillity.

Zawitz began his travels in Asian philosophy and art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

with Chan Wing Tsit. Chan was a consummate scholar, teacher and mentor,

and a living exemplar of the Chinese philosophical tradition. Of all the leading

figures in twentieth century Chinese philosophy, he was among the first to

make his home in the West, teaching and publishing in English and Chinese,

but always in touch with Asia. From Chan Zawitz learned about Chinese

philosophy, and most importantly, the Tao Te Ching.1 He was also convinced

by Chan to further his studies at the University of Hawaii, where Chan himself

had started his teaching career in the United States and where he began, in

1939, a series of conferences on Asian and comparative philosophy which

later gave rise to the journal Philosophy East and West.2

In Hawaii, Zawitz began a two year period of independent study with

Prithwish Neogy, who was a renowned scholar of Asian art and aesthetics.

Here he encountered the writings of Ananda Coomaraswamy, Jacques

Maritain and Sigfried Giedion and began to develop his own philosophical

pluralism, drawing on primitive art, Taoism, Zen Buddhism, tantric art, rasa

Left: PortraitwithInfinity6.34.r9,2009Stainless steel, granite,JW Marriott, Hong Kong,

6 7

He distinguishes two stages in the creative process, the first which occurs

below the level of consciousness in the “preconscious intellect” in which

are found “sources of knowledge and creativity, of love and supra-sensuous

desire hidden in the primordial translucid night of the intimate vitality of

the soul.”6 It is in the preconscious intellect that the artist’s soul ceases

to be controlled by the external world and his creative intuition begins to

germinate. In the second stage the creative idea is clarified for consciousness

and is expressed. In an age that is essentially practical, and which posits

praxis as the ultimate truth, he advocated the primacy of the spiritual.

Maritain’s revelations about the importance of intuition are reiterated by

Sigfried Giedion. Giedion is perhaps best known as an architectural historian,

and author of Space Time and Architecture. However, in his book The Eternal

Present: The Beginnings of Art, originally presented at the National Gallery

of Art in Washington DC in 1957 as the AW Mellon Lectures in Fine Arts, he

examines theories regarding the origins of art. Giedion notes that art is a

fundamental experience, born out of the urge for elemental expression. “It

grows out of man’s innate passion to develop a means of expression for his

inner life. There is no difference whether the basic impulse for these feelings

rises from a cosmic anguish, the urge to play, art for arts sake, or – as today

– the desire to express in signs and symbols the realm of the unconscious.”

The key to Zawitz’s philosophy is pluralism, a subtle melding of Eastern

and Western thought. This is not as straightforward as it might seem. In

his book Mysticism and Morality: Oriental Thought and Moral Philosophy

the philosopher Arthur Danto notes that while “the East has always held

the promise of a deeply alternative existence, satisfying and pacific and

exalting… It is nevertheless an aim of this book to discourage the hope that a

way through our moral perplexities may be found in the Orient.”7

and comparative philosophy to help articulate his understanding of the

fundamental underlying principles of art and creativity.

In his essay The Theory of Art in Asia, Ananda Coomaraswamy expounded on

many different issues from the nature and meaning of representation in Asia,

to symbolism and convention, originality and novelty, intensity and energy

and the nature of art itself.3 He concluded his essay with an examination

of rasa as a central part of the formal theory of art in India. In Sanskit, the

term rasa means the sap or juice of plants. In this physical sense, we can

readily grasp what this essence may imply, be it orange or lemon or any other

flavour. But when the word is applied to Indian art and aesthetic experience,

it also refers to the state of heightened delight produced in the viewers mind

by the emotion and experience of a work of art. The term was originally

applied to the performing arts of dance, drama and music, but, as pointed

out by Coomaraswamy, it is immediately applicable to all the arts. The

principle of rasa can be subdivided into nine distinct sentiments, each arising

from or embodying particular subjects and situations. These comprise the

erotic, comic, pathetic, furious, heroic, terrible, odious, marvellous and the

quiescent or tranquil sentiment. This last sentiment, known as Shanta,

comes from knowing, or at least approaching, the utter serenity of spiritual

tranquillity.

Maritain was a French Catholic philosopher who advocated what he called

“True Humanism” saying that the human person is both material and spiritual,

and can become more than a merely self–interested individual by acquiring

and practicing the habits necessary to actualize his humanity.4 In his Creative

Intuition in Art and Poetry Marutain describes creativity as naturalistic in the

sense that it does not rely on any external source or Platonic muse.5

Left: ZawitzwithredhatSwami, 1973(Photographer unknown)Photo taken on streets in Kathmandu.

Below:TibetanChortenTangbocheKhumbu,(Photographer: R X Zawitz)1973Himalayas, Nepal.

Bottom:ZawitzonKhumbutrailtowardsMtEverest,1973(Photographer unknown)Himalayas, Nepal.

Top: Tibetanmanwithprayerwheel, 1973, Kathmandu.

Left: Tibetannomadwithprayerwheel, 1973, Kathmandu.

Right: RichardXZawitz,1972(Photographer unknown)Zawitz sitting outside wood cutters cottage studio, Kyoto.

8 9

The literal meaning of the word Tao is path, or way. The term is generally

used in three ways: giving a name to the ultimate reality that surpasses

human experience; describing the observable rhythms and patterns of

the universe; and describing the way of human life when it is in harmony

with the Tao of the universe. An important aspect of the Tao is its state

of perpetual motion. “All things, as they come into being and develop,

progress through a series of changes moving persistently to a return to the

state of non-being, the primal unity and source of all things.”10 The basically

circular movement of Tao confirms the idea of heaven as round, symbolized

by the circle. The pictographs and ideograms of Chinese writing may often

themselves encapsulate their meaning. Thus the character tao combines the

character ch’o representing a foot taking a step or moving step by step and

the character shou, or head.11 The combination of head and foot symbolizes

Tao as an inner way, it also illustrates the circular, complete and perpetual

course of Tao for a circle’s beginning and end are the same and the movement

around its periphery is unceasing.12

These two pictographs also illustrate the Taoist idea of Tao as both unmoving

and continually moving, as the path lies motionless on the ground yet goes

somewhere and so has movement. This aspect of Tao is the basis of the

concept wu wei, a phrase which translates literally as inaction but in Taoism

means actionless activity or pure effectiveness.13 Another interpretation is

that the concept describes creative quietude, being that state when a certain

dislocation of the conscious self takes place, and which frees the resources of

the subconscious mind to engage in pure creativity.14

“I practice open ended creativity. I don’t have a point or a goal. I don’t set

a goal for the creative aspects of what I do. Do you know Aldous Huxley’s

Doors of Perception? By being able to open certain doors at certain times

you realize that there is more to life than what you see. There is another

dimension out there. Artists are able to get out of their ordinary mind. They

use visualization in numerous ways including meditation and so on. I use

numerous methodologies but one thing I use is just allowing things to come

in and open up in your brain. I am able to use a 3-D virtual reality in my head

to visualize things. I also utilize direct carving as I know there is something

inside the stone.”

Zawitz’s graduation work was a stone carving called First Twist. In this work

a cylinder of white marble rises from a trapezoid wooden base. At about half

its height, the cylinder bends sideways and turns up over itself completing

one full turn. At its apex, the cylinder tapers and ends in a roughly spherical

shape. It is a remarkably allusive work, suggesting at times either an Indian

figure in a pronounced tribhanga pose (where the figure is oppositely

bent at waist and neck to form a “S” shape), or a Tang dynasty figurine of

For Danto, the problem lies with an inability or unwillingness to put one’s

own cultural assumptions at risk. But Zawitz was able to take risks and to

“unlearn” his western aesthetic bias. 8 For him, the key that opens the doors

to perception is the nondualist interrelatedness of all things. It is this that

for him links the art of Asia with that of the West – from the humanism

of Michelangelo to the inventive genius of Da Vinci and the pure form of

Constantin Brancusi.

“In the Zen Buddhist tradition that I embrace I believe in the rule of no rule.

My professor Neogy taught me something that I have never stopped living

and that is life is not a matter of either / or, it is both / and. I have never

eliminated any possibilities. There is no reason to. Why should I? Why

should I conform? It is my job to use the understanding that I have been

given to perpetuate the conformity of non-conformity.”9

“My art practice is intuitive. I still to this day and everyday practice an ancient

Chinese exercise from Taoism called Tzu-jan, or spontaneity. I believe that to

be a true creative, you can’t be on a fixed path. This is both a belief system

and a methodology for me. It can be counter-productive if for example in

business you make fast spontaneous decisions, but I carry what I do into

everything that I do. Tzu-jan is a methodology. The great Chinese painters

all employed it. If something dripped that was not a setback but something

that you worked with. Spontaneity allows other multiple relations to happen

and in more of a Jungian synchronistic way than in a linear way, so that when

you allow these spontaneous moments to happen so many other things can

happen your life is completely open ended. It allows anything to happen.”

Left: FirstTwist,197136"Hx22"W, edition 1/1, Carrara marble.

Bottom:RichardXZawitz,1974(Photographer unknown)Meditating on the Khumbu trail to Everest base camp.

Top: Taocaligraphy,2010

Above: Chaosscroll,197360"Hx30"W, ink on paper.

10 11

work with the brush), space (including the formal qualities of composition

and line quality), and literary value (the moji). The moji is the character or

other component of the written word that was regarded as the irreducible

unit of calligraphy. In the 1940s and 1950s Morita advocated focus on the

formal qualities of calligraphy. In an essay about Matisse he enthuses about

Matisse’s extreme reduction of all form to pure and simplified line and,

as calligraphy is also an art of line, imagined these two art forms coming

together like a rainbow with one end in the East and one in the West.17

Morita’s own calligraphy is avowedly illegible. In a theory of expression

influenced by the Zen Buddhist principles taught by the Kyoto School of

philosophy which argued that while the West was tied to dualistic thinking

and approaches to art, the East pursued a path of nondualism, Morita

understood the given conventional forms (the moji) as attaining utter

sameness with something profoundly internal to the calligrapher. “The

character is revered as the timeless product of centuries of language use, but

at the same time it is intuited at a level so deeply interior to the calligrapher

as to undergo a massive upheaval when brought forth as an expression in

brush, ink and paper.”18

Zawitz also travelled to India, Nepal and Tibet. In Tibet he encountered

the Tibetan infinite knot, the pattern of interwoven lines without ending or

beginning that is a symbol of infinite life and creation. Zawitz returned to

America in 1975 and built a studio in Waltham, Massachusetts, in Boston’s

western suburbs. Here he began the process of unifying and reconciling his

myriad influences and experiences into the creation of a four dimensional

universal energy form. He was inspired to look for a shape or pattern that

could evoke the eternal without ever being stiff or constrained.

a woman with her hair piled characteristically high. As an abstract image,

the essential elements of the sculpture have been distilled in order the

simultaneously simplify and concentrate the composition. Abstraction in the

Greek sense of aphaeresis refers to “the process as well as the result of the

withdrawal from the particular, accidental, inessential in order to obtain the

general, inevitable, essential. By bringing together essential characteristics

in one artistic concept, abstraction offers us our most important means of

systematically arranging the boundless multiplicity of objects which approach

us in our perception, our imagination, and even in our thoughts.”15

In his senior year thesis that accompanied this work Zawitz wrote “It is the

reverse evolution from the complex to the simple; the simplicity of primal

unity and the transcending of the complex, the superficiality of things, that

the artist of Tao searches for.16

On his graduation in 1972 from the University of Hawaii with a major in fine

arts sculpture and sub majors in Asian art history and Asian philosophy, Zawitz

went to live and work as a sculptor in Kyoto, Japan. He became interested in

the story of Enku, an itinerant Buddhist monk who lived in Japan in the 17th

century in the early Edo period. Enku is known as a shugendo, a devotee of

a form of religion that is a conglomerate of Taoism, Shinto and Buddhism.

Shugendo means the path of training and testing and it centres on an ascetic

and nomadic life. Enku travelled all over Japan and everywhere he went, he

would carve an image of the Buddha. During his lifetime he was extremely

prolific and is reputed to have carved some 120,000 images of Buddha. No

two were alike and most were crudely fashioned from found timbers with

just a few stokes of an axe. These images were not made as monuments

or for self aggrandizement but for their spiritualism. Enku left these simple

expressions of prayer and devotion as a reminder of enlightenment in

hamlets and villages all over Japan.

The notion of a cheap, simple and widely available evocation of enlightened

creativity was to have an enduring impact on Zawitz. However, it was not

yet evident in the work that he produced at this time. A work of Zawitz

from this period is a rather bland wood carving representing Bodhidharma,

the Buddhist monk traditionally credited with having introduced the

Taoist influenced Ch’an (Zen in Japanese) Buddhism to China. Traditional

representations of Bodhidharma depict him as an ill-tempered, bearded and

wild-eyed ruffian.

In Japan Zawitz worked with the calligrapher Morita Shiryū who had played

an important role in developing a hybrid art that fused Japanese calligraphy

with aspects of Western expressionism. Morita theorized calligraphy as

having three properties: time (the duration of reading and of creating a

Bottom:Darumatorso, 197236"H x24"W, Japanese cypress.

Opposite Top: MoritaShiryu,1968Ink on rice paper with signature and seal below.

Opposite Left:RichardXZawitz,1973(Photographer unknown)Zawitz outside wood cutters cottage studio in Kyoto.

Opposite Right:Tibetanprayercircumambulation,1973(Photographer: R X Zawitz)Bodinath Stupa, Kathmandu.

12 13

having no shape of its own but capable of being infinitely accommodating.

Water also attains clarity through calmness – “muddy water let stand will

clear”. These are the virtues of wu wei.

Zawitz is also interested in the ways in which his forms seem to outline

volumetric space while the shapes created are open, empty and without

mass. His linked curves make an outline enclosing nothing. Emptiness is

a key Taoist concept as emptiness is Tao. Space is filled with meaning as

it is filled with Tao. Tao cannot be defined but it can be alluded to. Thus

the Tao Te Ching notes that the inner space of a jug is its essential part, not

the pottery, and that it is the space within four walls that comprises the

usefulness of a room. The purpose of Taoist meditation is to empty the

mind of all distracting thought and emotion so that it is more conducive to

quiescence and receptivity and better able to reflect on the Tao. In Indian

art, this is also the rasa of Shanta.

“The void is an extremely important part of my work. It ties into the Buddhist

thought and into Taoist thought because without emptiness you can’t have

the solid. Part of my learning and aesthetics is the displacement of space.

There is a form of elegance in displacing space and in leaving voids. It is a

methodology of space displacement.”

Most often when we appreciate a successful work of art we share its rasa - the

state of heightened sensation produced in the viewers mind by the emotion

and experience of the work itself. But with Zawitz’s work we can go even

further because we are the artist. We are responsible for the kinesthetic

action of creation and can take pleasure in both the instinctive, subliminal act

of creation itself and in the form that we create. It was while watching visitors

to his exhibition manipulate this art work and taking great pleasure in it that

Zawitz had an epiphany. He realized that this object could be accessible to

millions of people – like Enku and his thousands of wooden Buddha, but it

could do more. It could allow all of them to clear their minds, to find clarity

and serenity and to participate and interact with the both the process and the

product of sculpture. The work itself seems to foster multiple intelligences.

People with strong left-brain traits are drawn to the logical linearity of the

sculpture. People with right brain dominance appreciate its allusive qualities

and its ability to spark visualization, imagination and intuition. Manipulation

of the work seems to allow us to link the powers of both hemispheres.

In a book published in 2009, noted psychologist Dr Roland Rotz noted that

“Researchers have begun to discover we can improve our ability to process

information and generate novel ideas through movement, which varies and

enhances our point of view. Recent research on movement and the brain

suggests that small and large motor movements are critical for improved

In 1975 he made a tall elegant double spiral form that he called Column of

Infinity. He kept a model of this work in his studio and found that visitors

were drawn to it and fascinated by their ability to manipulate the elements

of the spiral into new and different shapes where every new shape was as

aesthetically pleasing as the last. From here Zawitz developed his line in

space. A line without beginning or end, solid yet supple, immutable yet

capable of constant change, a delight to both hand and eye that he called

Statue of Infinity. It was this work comprising a series of linked quarter-

round curves that can each be twisted around its central axis which was

commercialised as the Tangle.

Visual reality is transitory at the best of times as objects seen under natural

conditions change in appearance from moment to moment owing to

changes in light, atmosphere and the relative positions of object and viewer.

Zawitz’s line in space gives physical form to things seen only in the mind’s

eye. Together the interlinked curves allude to many things. They may be

a waterfall or the movement of water through a series of shallow rapids,

rushing around and tumbling over rocks. They may be clouds, tendrils of

vapour blown by the wind. These are powerful images that have important

associations in Taoism. Water is an important Taoist symbol, always taking

the path of least resistance, finding rest at the lowest point, making a level

surface over irregular depths, infinitely supple yet incomparably strong and

Left:StatueofInfinity, 1983(Photographer unknown)8'Hx4'W, stainless steel,Hyatt Macau.

Bottom:Infinitecolumn/Treeoflife, 197548"Hx6"W, walnut wood.

Top:Infinitybuild, Richard X Zawitz and Matteo Meglioli building an Infinite Man, Infinity gallery, Hong Kong

14 15

cognitive functions such as focusing, remembering and critical thinking.

Movement also plays an important role in improving emotions like pleasure

joy and contentment. For over two decades, Tangle Toys have challenged

and inspired adults and children to think creatively while imaging something

novel and unique. No matter how they interact with Tangles, my clients find

they provide an important sensory stimulant that helps their ability to focus

on the discussion at hand.”19

Zawitz’s sculpture employs what he describes as a “pure compound

curve, which is a curve coming from two positions – the front and the

side.” “Compound curves are groovy. They are beyond groovy, they are

wonderful. Who doesn’t love a compound curve? I am lucky I figured that

out because everyone does. Why? There are some things that are intrinsic

in the human brain that approves of and appreciates a curve. That is part

of my discovery. My parallel discovery was that vortexes, spirals, curves

and circles are in combination with nature which is science, and are in

combination with mankind which is all of art and culture. These are parallel

and concomitant with each other. My theory is that there is an intuitive or

intrinsic understanding of the curve in the human brain. It is an attraction.

If I was a scientist I would have empirical proof that I had happened onto

something. One hundred million versions of the tangle is a lot of laboratory

work that helps to prove my thesis.”

In documents filed with the US patent and trademark office in 1982, Zawitz’s

sculpture is described rather dryly as “an annular support device formed by a

series of identical torus segments with adjacent segments connected end-to-

end in a continuous loop.” As patent protection is only afforded to inventions

which have a utilitarian purpose, the documentation describes the sculpture

as a “manual diversion tranquilizer” and notes that “hand action coupled

with a low attention requirement is well known to have a tranquilizing effect.

Crocheting and whittling are traditional examples of diversion-relaxation

therapy. The present annular device provides a similar tension relief function.

Twisting the device is a simple, thoughtless procedure, which instantly

produces unlimited fascinating and unpredictable configurations. With each

twist of the segments, the device undergoes a chain-wide transformation

in silhouette and axis orientation without repetition. The device functions

as a mechanical or sculptural kaleidoscope, with a corresponding relaxing,

mesmeric characteristic.”20

“The continuous centre line of symmetry around the annular device insures

that each of the infinite random configurations will have a smooth and

graceful silhouette, which contributes to the relaxation of the user. The torus

section embodiments produce only continuous configurations free from

geometric or mathematical discontinuities (no infinite derivatives).

Bottom:Tangletoyandkeychain,plastic,The tangle has been used to promote a range of international companies.

Opposite:RichardZawitz’sfirstpatent,1985To date he has 20 pantents.

16 17

Zawitz sees his new monumental stainless steel pieces as part of an evolution.

“The work is contemporary but also futuristic. I believe that I have invented

a new paradigm aesthetically as well as a patented invention. So taking that

and having a narrow window to open that allows creativity without having

to spend years carving will open up innumerable creative possibilities. The

creativity is not going to rest but will self perpetuate. As a non-theory person

I am intuitive. My middle initial that was given to me is X, for experimental.”

“As someone willing to experiment I have no fear of building these sculptures

or showing them in a museum or any other formal setting. For a client in

Korea I have proposed a monumental Infinity sculpture that has 1.2 metre

diameter segments and is 50 metres high. I have allowed myself to dream

this large.”

Zawitz’s work and his methodology allow his public art clients an

unprecedented degree of participation in the creative process. In traditional

public art sculpture the role of the artist is to determine the form and to

capture it for his audience. Yet for Zawitz, everyone is an artist.

“In order to make the Infinity sculpture for the JW Marriott Hotel in Hong Kong

I knew the location where it was to be placed and I knew the parameters. I

specifically allowed spontaneity to find the shape. It took about eight minutes

to get there using a model and when if found it I loved it and just stopped.

As the tangle master I believe in myself and my abilities. But what makes an

artist? As everyone can manipulate a tangle into an artistic shape my job is

as facilitator. With the three dimensional modelling software now available

any client can manipulate the model into any configuration and when they

The annular device may be displayed as a stationary artistic sculpture without

change, and still have a desirable therapeutic effect. The flowing appearance

of the annular device contributes to a relaxing atmosphere.”

The mutability of the work invites the viewer to consider the evanescence

of life while its continuously flowing form suggests lightness, freedom and

the interconnectedness of all things. Zawitz explores in three dimensions

the expressive qualities of what Paul Klee famously called “taking a line for a

walk” when describing drawing. For further variation in the forms available,

it is possible to break the sculpture at any one of its joins, by simply pulling it

apart, and to tie an actual knot in the length before reforming the loop. The

geometrical possibilities of the sculpture are endless. In his work Zawitz sees

not just the interconnectedness of all things but also the double helix as the

building block of life or the cosmic spiral form of the galaxy.

There is also something organic about his dynamic, undulating, flowing

curvilinear forms that meshes well with his philosophy. “For the cultures

of Asia the forest has always been a teacher and the message of the forest

has been the message of interconnectedness and diversity, renewability and

sustainability, integrity and pluralism.” In some works Zawitz experiments

with crystal studded surfaces or brightly coloured highly textured spiky

surfaces that seem to belong to the animal kingdom. “The logic is threefold.

People are attracted to curves, the human brain loves colour as eye candy

and people love to touch. If I combine all of these things in one work it may

lead to more people liking it but this is not the reason why I build. I build

because of a need to create and if I am lucky enough to also please a big

audience then I feel as if I have won a certain kind of game.”

Left:MuseumtanglewithSwarovskielements, 2009(Photographer: Joan Boivin)Chrome plated plastic with 3,000 Swarovski elements.

Bottom:Rosemary,2009(Photographer unknown)famous model wearing Swarovski Tangle. Dragon Center Tangle Fashion show, Hong Kong.

Right:Infinity6.34,20099'Hx3'W, stainless steel, black granite, JW Mariott, Hong Kong

18 19

get to the shape they want they can stop, photograph it at that point, and

record the angle of twist from a notional centre line of every single segment.

The model can then be fabricated into a full size sculpture.”

“I love stainless steel. For me the choice of materials helps to define fine art

status. I could build an inflatable version that would be perfectly valid but

would not be considered fine art. You have to have boundaries somewhere.

Even though I believe in infinity I have fixed points in materials and in

aesthetics. The other thing I love about stainless steel is its timelessness.”

Just as his forms may evoke the ceaseless rippling movement of water,

so too do the reflective properties of stainless steel suggest the reflective

qualities of water. Zawitz is fascinated by surface and likes to focus on the

reflections which are subject to distortion across the whole convex surface.

The reflections act in counterpoint to the solidity of the physical sculpture.

On compound curves the complex reflections of their surroundings shift,

when you shift your focus, back to the solid object with an immutable logic.

The sense of fleeting motion and entanglement is captured and preserved

in an instant.

In his works Zawitz explores the nexus between being and nothingness and

captures temporary, transitional, ephemeral moments – the instant of time

between one state of being and another – which is after all, a metaphor

for life.

1 Chan Wing Tsit is author of a number of important texts including Chan Wing Tsit, A Sourcebook in Chinese Philosophy, Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1963; Laozi, The way of Lao Tzu (Tao-te ching); Translated with introductory essays, comments, and notes by Wing-tsit Chan, Bobbs Merrill, Indianapolis, 1963; Junjiro Takakusu, The essentials of Buddhist philosophy: Edited by Wing-tsit Chan and Charles A. Moore, Office Appliance Co, Honolulu, 1956.2 Philosophy East and West: A Quarterly of Comparative Philosophy has been published continuously by University of Hawaii Press since 1951. 3 Ananda K Coomaraswamy, The Transformation of Nature in Art, Dover, New York, 1934.4 Jacques Maritain, True Humanism; Translated by M. R. Adamson, Geoffrey Bles, London, 1939.5 Jacques Maritain, Creative Intuition in Art and Poetry, Harvill Press, London, 1954. This essay was first delivered at the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC in 1952 as the first of the AW Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts.6 Carl R. Hausman, “Maritain’s Interpretation of Creativity in Art”, Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, Vol. 19, No. 2 (Winter, 1960), pp. 215-219.7 Arthur Danto, Mysticism and Morality: Oriental Thought and Moral Philosophy, Basic Books, New York, 1972.8 For a detailed critique of Danto’s position see Robert Carter “Ethics as a Declaration of Interdependence”, Trumpeter, Vol. 9, No. 3, 1992, online at http://trumpeter.athabascau.ca/content/v9.3/carter.html9 From transcripts of conversations with the artist in Hong Kong on 25 November 2009. All subsequent direct quotes are from this same conversation.10 Mai Mai Sze, The Way of Chinese Painting, Its Ideas and Technique, With Selections from the Seventeenth Century Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting, Vintage Books, New York, 1959, pg. 17.11 Ibid., pg 428.12 Ibid., pg. 17.13 Ibid. pg 17.14 Huston Smith, The Illustrated World’s Religions, Harper Collins, New York, 1995, pg. 135.15 J. Hoffmeister, Wörterbuch der philosophischen Begriffe, Hamburg, 1955 cited by Sigfried Giedion, The Eternal Present: Volume 1, The Beginnings of Art, Bollingen Foundation, New York, 1962, pg. 12.16 Richard X Zawitz, Taoism and the Experience of Art, Unpublished University of Hawaii Thesis, Hawaii, 1971, pg. 3.17 Bert Winther Tamaki, Art in the Encounter of Nations: Japanese and American artists in the early postwar years, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 2001, pp. 66-89.18 Ibid. pg. 84.19 Richard X Zawitz and Mary Beth Spann, Learning with Tangle Brain Tools, Tangle Creations Inc, San Francisco, 2009, pg. xiv.20 United States Patent Number 4509929 at http://www.uspto.gov. A patent is a property right granted to an inventor that confers the right to exclude others from making, using or selling the invention. A utility patent may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or compositions of matters, or any new useful improvement thereof. The use must be specified in the application.21 Ibid.22 J Bandyopadhyay and Vandana Shiva, “Asia’s Forests, Asia’s Cultures” in Lessons of the Rainforest, Ed. Suzanne Head and Robert Heinzman, Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 1990

Opposite top:Audioforms,200935"Hx24"W, edition 1/1, chrome plated plastic, electronic components, Sony Corporation, Tokyo.

Opposite bottom:StatueofInfinity, 2001(Photographer: R X Zawitz)9'Hx9'W, stainless steel, laquered wood, Art Expo, Jacob Javits convention center

Below:Lucitestudyforbank,2011Three dimensional bank logo16"Hx8"Ø, lucite

20 21

The Versatility of Vision As a sculptor Richard X Zawitz developed his mature voice in the early 1980s.

He moved from the natural materials of stone and wood to mirrored stainless

steel, setting up a contrast between the fluidity of his forms and the solidity

of their substance as well as allowing the mirrored surfaces to suggest an

integration of the forms with their environments and embarked upon a

series of monumental works collectively entitled Infinity.

The compound curves that comprise the building blocks of his Infinity

sculptures may be configured into an infinite variety of combinations, forming

sculptures whose sinewy forms spiral upward, charged with potential energy,

or hug the ground as they meander from place to place. Their allusive

character conflate references from all world cultures, so that they strike a

chord in all who experience them

A wave may symbolise something passive, as in all those who let themselves

be borne away to wherever it may carry them, or may suggest something

open and illimitable or the tumult of violent action. Likewise a curve

simultaneously describes liberation and confinement, while a curl encloses

the signified within the signifying. Complex combinations of compound

curves represent the fundamental interconnectedness of all things and the

infinite possibilities which are the birthright of all mankind.

His work strikes a chord in science, as his models have been adopted by

molecular biologists as a tool in DNA modelling, and by physicists seeking

to describe cosmic string theory. It also has applications in education and

physical therapy. However, it is as public art that his work has the greatest

impact as both grand statements and functional objects with practical beauty.

Right:Tangleproteinmodels,2010Created by Professor Marcel Jaspars, Edinburgh University, Scotland

22 23

Infinity6.34.r9,200910'Hx48'W, stainless steel, granite, JW Marriott, Hong Kong

Infinity8.30,201012'Hx8'W, stainless steel, granite, USC Ronald Tutor Campus Center, California

24 25

StatueofInfinity8.20,200310'Hx8'W, stainless steel, Renaissance Harbour View Hotel, Hong Kong,

StatueofInfinity10.20,2004 10'Hx8'W, stainless steel, Jacob Javits Convention Center, temporary exhibit,California

26 27

InfiniteSteel,2005 10'Hx8'W, stainless steel, Mario Pelligrini estate, Montara, California

StatueofInfinityOne,19948'Hx6'W, stainless steel, Hong Kong Convention Center entrance, Hong Kong.

28 29

InfinityX1-66,2011 4'Hx10'L, stainless steel, Parc 66 mall,Jinan, China

InfinityX2-66,2011 4'Hx10'L, stainless steel, Parc 66 mall,Jinan, China

30 31

InfiniteMan,2012 6.6'Hx3.3'W,x3.3'D, stainless steel, Infinity Gallery, Hong Kong

InfiniteMan,2012 6.6'Hx3.3'W,x3.3'D, stainless steel, Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong

32 33

InfiniteWoman,2012 6.6'Hx3.3'W,x3.3'D, stainless steel, Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong

InfiniteGroup,2012 10'Hx11.5'Wx14.6'D, stainless steel, Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong

34 35

Conceptual Environments This section consists of computer rendered visualizations of Infinity Art

in actual backgrounds and is intended to inspire those interested in

eventualizing these creations.

Left: WireFrame,Infinite Man,2012.

Clockwise from top: InfinityHorseConcept,2012.

36 37

Infinity24.280,conceptual environment,Sydney, Australia,12'Hx400'W, concrete, mosaic tiles.

38 39

INFINITYSCULPTURE(2009)3.34 R9.5 1/8, Stainless Steel

StatueofRings,conceptual environment,Interior,12'Hx6'W, stainless steel, granite.

Infinity6.32,conceptual environment,Interior,10'Hx6'W, stainless steel.

40 41

Infinity12.128t,conceptual environment, The City of Arts and Sciences, Valencia, Spain,48'Hx60'W, stainless steel.

InfinityFountain12.30,conceptual environment, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, 15'Hx10'W, stainless steel.

42 43

SpiritofPeace,conceptual environment Istanbul,75'Hx60'W, bronze.

InfinityFountain18.96,conceptual environment,Water feature98'Hx24'W, stainless steel, granite, water.

44 45

Infinity8.36,conceptual environment, 10'Hx8'W, stainless steel,One Island South,Aberdeen, Hong Kong

InfiniteFourPartsUniverse,conceptual environment,Vatican City,200'Hx200'W, stainless steel.

46 47

StatueofInfinity,GatewaytoWest,conceptual environment,San Francisco harbour entrance, San Francisco,275'Hx96'W, metal alloy.

48 49

InfinityandTao,conceptual environment,2012, July 23rd-29thOne Man Show,Oval Atrium, ifc mall,Hong Kong

50 51

Awakening Perception In his earliest work in wood and stone, Richard Zawitz explored the complex

array of images and objects that served to remind and support the essential

teachings of Buddhism, Taoism, Shinto and the other Eastern religions and

philosophies that he was learning at that time. In works such as Daruma

Torso (1972) or Guardian Torso (Date) he sought to express notions of an

idealised figure. Other works such as India (Date) or Daruma (Date) present

the Buddha in a more transcendent way, far from the earthly realm and

closer to a heavenly sphere.

In later works he sought to deconstruct solid forms into primal organic

elements. In works such as Flying Stone (Date), Mind Over Matter (Date)

and Cosmic Stone (Date) he used stone to capture the fizz and spark of

effervescence – the moment of transition when gas is freed from an aqueous

solution. These works appear like rafts of bubbles, held together by surface

tension. In fact they have been laboriously carved out of alabaster. Their

combination of spherical forms allude to problems of space - just as bubbles

have the smallest possible surface area for any given volume and will always

find the smallest surface area between points or edges.

But it was in Tibet that he had his epiphany. It was here that he encountered

the Tibetan Infinite Knot, the pattern of interwoven lines without beginning

or end that is a symbol of infinite life and creation. The Tibetan Infinite Knot

is a symbol of endless, flowing spirit and wisdom. At this moment Zawitz

began to imagine a knot with no beginning and no end that could twist, turn

and change into various shapes, but never lose its essential character. The

Tibetan Infinite Knot captivated and inspired him and led him to explore

curvilinear forms representing themes of infinity, rebirth and universal

harmony. It was this symbol that led him to the realization that he could take

his First Twist beyond its first turn and on into infinity.

Above:Infinityscroll,197360"Hx30"W, ink on paper.

Right: woodstudies,2008, Teak and Cypress.

Left: RichardXZawitz,1969Self portrait, Hawaii.

52 53

Cosmicstone,198924"Wx18"Hx18"L, edition 1/1,alabaster, glass beads, rosewood.

Guardianfigurebust,1973 18"Hx12"Wx6"D, Cypress wood.

54 55

AlienBuddha,1997-20048'Hx6'Wx3'D,Picasso marble, wood, stainless steel.

Flyingstone199124"Wx12"Lx18"H, edition 1/1, Alabaster.

56 57

Torso,197048"Hx24"x14"D,Serpentine and pine.

Infinitecolumn/Treeoflife, 197548"Hx6"W, walnut wood.

58 59

Tangled Creations

India,19714'Hx12"W, koa wood, marble.

Mindovermatter199036"Wx16"Hx10"D, edition 1/1,alabaster, acrylic, teak.

60 61

PreBuddhisticBuddha,197112"Hx5"W, bronze, plastic fly, wooden antique. China

HubertIMungus,19756'Hx20"W, wood charred patina.

62 63

Tangle Creations In museum shops everywhere we can see examples of how art is merchandised

in order to provide visitors with an enduring memento of their experience

of art. Well known images of works from the collection are reproduced

on everything from tea towels to coffee cups. The beauty of the tea towel

or cup is thus enhanced, but the tea towel or cup is not itself transformed

into an art object. The towel or cup retains its base character and the art is

reduced to mere decoration. Richard Zawitz’s Tangle is different. The Tangle

can be merchandised, and has been merchandised in more than 100 million

editions and adapted into a range of entirely new applications without ever

losing its essential qualities as an art object. As such, it is arguably one of the

most successful art objects ever made.

Some adaptations relate just to the surface finish. When coated in crystals in

either solid or broken colours the work functions as jewellery or adornment.

When coated in felt or in soft spiky finishes the work offers users a range of

very different tactile experiences. At other times the surface finish provides

a platform for branding messages. To date dozens of global corporations

including Coca Cola, McDonalds and Kellogs have used Tangles in order to

help identify them as a creative company.

Other applications are more adaptive. When sheets of clear or coloured

methacrylate are slung across the notional planes between the curves, the

result is a line of sculpture-based furniture. The Infinity Furniture collection

was developed by Zawitz in collaboration with Pierandrei Associati in Milan.

The first two armchairs in the series were launched at the Salone D’Mobili in

Milan in 2008. The same design collaboration resulted in a lighting fixture

that is now produced by Tecnodelta. A desk lamp known as the Tangle Lamp

allows users to twist and manipulate the arms of the lamp in order to put the

light wherever it is wanted. The contours and lines of the arms have all of the

flexibility of the original Tangle but from a solid base.

Tangle Creations is now a multi-faceted content, product development,

and distribution company for Tangle-related products and concepts,

with products in the toy, electronic, therapy, pet, inflatable, educational,

premium, promotional and sports sectors. This extraordinarily broad range

of adaptations demonstrates the true versatility of Richard X Zawitz’s vision.

Top and above:TangleCreationsIdentity,www.tanglecreations.com

Left:Infinityalpha4.16,20086'Hx4'D, stainless steel, acrylic.

64 65

Infinitylight,20088'Hx8'W, aluminum, lighting components, Baci Abbracci flagship store, Milan.

MuseumchrometangleandMichaelJackson,2008 (March)Italia Vogue magazine cover.

66 67

Infinitybeta4.16,200836"Hx40"W, stainless steel, acrylic, design collaboration with Pierandre Associati Milan.

Infinityalpha4.16,2008 6'Hx4'D, stainless steel, acrylic, design collaboration with Pierandre Associati Milan.

68 69

MuseumchrometangleonthesetofSpyKids4movie.2010

Infinity4.20,200936"Hx30"W, stainless steel, 36,000 Swarovski elements.

70 71

Left from top:ZenBlingRXZseriesX001, TangleRocketball, TangleMatrixAirlessBall.2010

Right:TangleDNASoundSpeakers.2005

Bottom:TangleLamp.1999

72 73

Clockwise from top left:TangleNeonSparkle,1981. TangleHairy,2010.SpikedBlingTangle,2009.TangleTherapy,2004.

Opposite clockwise from top right:TangleOriginalChrome,1981.TangleJrTriColorMetallic,1981.LearningwithTangleBrainToolsBook,2004.

74 75

Left from top:TangleTherapy, TangleJrFuzzies.

Opposite Right from top:TangleHairy, TangleBling.

Left from top:InfinityArtMiniatures,SeriesX1withSwarovskiElements,2012.

76 77

Infinity Gallery San Francisco

San Francisco,385 Oyster Point Road,South San Francisco,USA

Left:LoftstudioinInfinitygallery,1975San Francisco, USA.

Middle:Zawitzrocklift,30 pound rock.

78 79

Infinity Gallery Hong Kong

Left:Zawitzsitting,(Photographer: Joan Boivin)2012, Infinity gallery, Hong Kong.

The Infinity Gallery Hong Kong is located in The Factory, a loft conversion

studio at the southside of Hong Kong.

Infinity Gallery Hong Kong

Suite 4, 9th Floor, The Factory

1 Yip Fat Street, Aberdeen

80 81

Curriculum Vitae Born Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USAUniversity of PittsburghUniversity of Hawaii, Major in Fine Art Sculpture, Minor Asian Art History and Asian PhilosophyTravel and study in Japan, Thailand, India, Nepal, Tibet

Solo Exhibitions

“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Hawaii Art Centre, Hawaii, USA“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Hawaii Art Centre, Hawaii, USA“Richard Zawitz Solo Exhibition”, University of Hawaii Art Centre, Hawaii, USA“Tantric Art in Thailand”, Bangkok Cultural Centre, Bangkok, Thailand“Zen Sculpture”, Berlin Fine Art Gallery, Berlin, Germany“Richard Zawitz: Asia Meets the West”, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong“East Meets West: The Taoist Art of Richard Zawitz”, Plum Blossoms Gallery, New York, USA“Richard Zawitz: Sculpture”, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong

Group Exhibitions

“Name of Exhibition”, Honolulu Academy of Art Museum, Hawaii, USA“American Sculptors”, Boston University Fine Arts Centre, Massachusetts, USA“West Coast Sculptors”, San Francisco Embarcadero Art Centre, California, USA“Two Asia Sculptors”, Two man show with Wu Tsai Shang, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong“The American Sculptor in Hawaii” Honolulu Academy of Art, Hawaii, USA“San Francisco Sculptors”, San Francisco Museum of Fine Art, California, USA“Group Show”, Grand Hyatt Hotel, Hong Kong“Asia and America”, Pittsburgh Cultural Centre, Pennsylvania, USA

Commissions / Placements

“Untitled”, Cor Ten Steel, University of Pittsburgh Campus, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA“Untitled”, Stainless Steel, Boston University Campus, Boston, Massachusetts, USA“Untitled”, Stainless Steel, Granite, Bank of America, San Francisco, California, USA“Untitled” Stainless Steel, Hyatt Hotel, Chicago, Illinois, USA“Untitled” Stainless Steel, Hyatt Hotel, Taipa, Macau“Untitled”, Stainless Steel, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Renaissance Hotel Harbour View, Hong Kong“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Mario Pelligrini Residence, Montara, California, USA“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Poly Concept Corporation, Paris, France“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, JW Marriott Hong Kong, Hong Kong“Infinity”, Stainless Steel, Ronald Tutor Campus Centre, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA “Infinity Z1-66”, Stainless Steel, Parc 66 mall, Jinan, China“Richard X Zawitz, Infinity and Tao, One Man Show", Oval Atrium, ifc mall, Hong Kong

19461967 - 19681969 - 19721972 - 1975

196819701971197219741985199019911995

19721975198019972000200120022006

19681975197819811983198420032005200720092010

20112012

Left:AlienBuddha,1997-20048'Hx6'Wx3'D, Picasso marble, wood, stainless steel.

82 83

Global News Media and Richard X Zawitz Global News Media and Richard X Zawitz

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Global News Media and Richard X Zawitz

86 87

Tangled Creations

INFINITYSCULPTURE(2009)3.34 R9.5 1/8, Stainless Steel

INFINITYSCULPTURE(2009)3.34 R9.5 1/8, Stainless Steel