Cake Slice
1998 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The symbolic importance of the number three appears to dominate the design concept of Nancy Slagle's server. The triangular form of the flat blade is echoed in the three dimensional head and shoulders of the handle. The repetition of three fretted lines on the blade and handle act as a staccato emphasis.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Silver, pierced, soldered, polished and textured |
| Brief description | Silver, USA, Lubbock, Texas, 1998, designed and made by Nancy Slagle |
| Physical description | The sixteen gauge blade has a trowel shape with rounded tip and polished finish. The blade is pierced with groups of paparell slots. It turns up sharply at the rear to an arched apron from which a three dimensional handle rises in the form of a male figure. The figure is made of two silhouette box structures soldered to the apron but split and joined over their interiors by boxes. The top box has three rib slits and a long triangular opening that defines the legs shows a gender indicator; this "shadow" box has a white reticulated finish. The black box has a cusped slot to represent the buttocks of the figure. The handle has a wire brush finish. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | Inscribed: N.SLAGLE / STERLING |
| Gallery label | This collection of silver slices, all commissioned over a period of twenty years by Professor Benton Seymour Rabinovitch FRS, is proof of the skill and diversity of contemporary silversmiths. Each artist craftsman has responded to the familiar functional form of the slice in an individual way, producing an astonishingly diverse range of interpretations. Each piece becomes an enchanting, decorative work of art. Professor Rabinovitch established a close rapport with each artist, always encouraging a freedom of creative expression. The response of these silversmiths has been not only to be strikingly imaginative but also to honour him by giving him their best work.
This collection is testimony to the significant contribution that one individual can make to supporting the craft of silversmithing. After commissioning work from some of the most illustrious names in British and North American silversmithing, Professor Rabinovitch has very generously donated his entire collection to the Victoria and Albert Museum, through the American Friends of the V&A.(2005) |
| Credit line | Given by the American Friends of the V&A through the generosity of Professor B. Seymour Rabinovitch |
| Historical context | Part of a collection of fish slices commissioned by Professor Rabinovitch from contemporary North American and British makers. |
| Summary | The symbolic importance of the number three appears to dominate the design concept of Nancy Slagle's server. The triangular form of the flat blade is echoed in the three dimensional head and shoulders of the handle. The repetition of three fretted lines on the blade and handle act as a staccato emphasis. |
| Bibliographic reference | Benton Seymour Rabinovitch and Helen Clifford, Contemporary Silver, commissioning designing collecting, London, Merrell, pp.148-9. ill. ISBN.1858941040 |
| Other number | LOAN:AMERICANFRIENDS.146-2005 - previous loan number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | M.119-2008 |
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| Record created | May 13, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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