  About the Artwork
  
  
  In this early work, the unruly, knotty weaving by Abakanowicz breaks the bounds of traditional tapestry making by departing from the flat-weave format. Similar to the expressionistic use of clay by Voulkos, she creates heavy, aggressively articulated, rough-surfaced, high relief, fiber sculptures. Sisal provides visual and tactile interest and its coarse, stiff quality contributes to the stability of the intuitively conceived fabric structures.
  
  
  Title
  Abakan 27
  
  
  Artwork Date
  1967
  
  Artist
  Magdalena Abakanowicz
  
  
  
  Life Dates
  1930 - 2017
  
  
  
  
  Nationality
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events.
  Some definitions include:
  Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation.
  
  
  
  Polish
  
  
  
  Culture
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group.
  
  
  
  
  ----------
  
  
  Medium
  Sisal and linen
  
  
  Dimensions
  Overall: 57 3/8 × 71 3/4 × 5 3/4 inches (145.7 × 182.2 × 14.6 cm)
  
  
  Classification
  Textiles
  
  
  Department
  Contemporary Art after 1950
  
  
  Credit
  Gift of Jack Lenor Larsen
  
  
  
  Accession Number
  
  
  
  This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection.
  Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings.
  For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups.
  
  
  
  80.17
  
  
  Copyright
  © Estate of Magdalena Abakanowicz, courtesy Marlborough Gallery, New York.
