Authenticating a Harry Bertoia Spray Sculpture  

Not to rain on your parade
... but that one also looks a lot like spray sculptures I have seen by David Grossman. They came with stone or chrome metal bases in both round and square shapes. I have one with the round base and it still has a partial label. Some dealers and auction houses will feign ignorance and try to pass them off as real, but they are not.
Still, if there is a chance that yours is a real Bertoia, it would be well worth having Val authenticate it.

sonambient
Those are called sonambient. don't get to excited yet, I have one, and I know it is not a real
Bertoia.
The greedy guys in NYC or 1st dibs will sell it attributed to Harry Bertoia and get a decent price. but nothing what it would be if it was a true Bertoia. If you paid nothing for it,(Under $2000.00 ) 99%of the time it will be nothing, just a nice reproduction. You are hoping for the 1% to hit the jackpot like a Jackson Pollock at a flee market, or Warhol painting in a attic.or George Nelson original marshmellow bench found at a auction in OHIO. for $25.00 . I have always heard that the Bertoias had some identification on the pieces. you might check as I think he has a museum somewhere.outside NYC.
http://www.harrybertoia.org/sonambient.html

Getting Lucky
I bought a piece for $2.00 at an auction in KC last year, and it sold for $4,600. I've had more homeruns, but that's just one good example.

onegroovydude
sounds like you blew that one out of the ball park!!
maybe lightning will strike twice for you.
I have a houseful of designer originals,Nelson Eames,Jacobsen,Mies Leon Rosen for Pace, Girard.and Micheal Taylor for Baker. and I have got some home runs with these boys, all original.

tynellbuyer
I'm not saying that the sculpture that onegroovydude has is not a real Bertoia. I was just pointing out the fact that there are pieces that are very derivative, if not blatant copies of the iconic Bertoia sprays. Obviously, they vary in material and quality, but I beg to differ with your assessment. Aside from the base, how is the piece below any less refined than the sculpture onegroovydude just acquired?
The fact that Bertoia did not sign his work, and some of the forms he created have been copied makes documentation and provenance all the more important if one is paying a significant sum for one, or trying to sell a Bertoia sculpture.
It may well be a genuine Bertoia, it may have the same artistic value, but without documentation or authentication, it will not have the same monetary value if Mr. groovydude decided to sell it. That's why I suggested getting Val to give it his stamp of approval is well worth the trouble or expense.
*edited for my atrocious spelling.

In the owners original post
he said Val had said it was post-Bertoia production and made by Knoll (so I doubt he'll be issuing any provenance for this one)

He also said the second time ...
He also said the second time he wasn't sure. I will find out for sure, and if it is, it is, and if not, then, oh well.

And this one?

ty
Not to split hairs, or wires as it is...
I know that the 1st one is not real, that was the point of my post. That is one of the David Grossman pieces.
But you suggest that the example #2, the one I posted a second time is wrong because the cluster is too tight and the wires don't drop (droop?) as much as the OP's example. Again, I disagree.
By that meaure this example would be a copy as well, No?

The plot is thickening though
as I just received a call from Val. He first told me that his father did not use stone bases 2" thick, only 4". Well, he just found a box with left over stone scraps in it, and to his surprise was a 2" piece.
He also wanted to inform me that he discovered some early pieces, that used a metal cup for holding the binded wire. He wants me to send him the sculpture for true authentication, and I am in the process of boxing it up now. So we will see for sure, as it will be inspected first hand, in person, by him.

I don't know why. He...
I don't know why. He apparently is having a tough time, and wants to see it right in front of his face. He wants to compare the base stone, the way the wires are seated, as well as the wires themselves.

So you're saying that Val dis...
So you're saying that Val discovered this stash of previously unknown 2" bases, and he also discovered some early pieces that use a metal cup -- all since yesterday?

All I know is what I'm being ...
All I know is what I'm being told. He said they basically have a small scrap yard of stuff, and found that piece, looking for it after our conversation. I'm not familiar with the daily routine at Val Bertoia's shop.

I have no idea and I'm not su...
I have no idea and I'm not suggesting he is making anything up -- it just struck me as odd that he would discover new information about Harry Bertoia since your conversation with him yesterday. I mean, it's not like Harry Bertoia is some unknown entity that nobody was interested in until recently. He's a major figure whose work goes for many thousands of dollars, and I can't believe this is the first time the issue of base size or metal cups have come up, as I am sure there are many people who have wanted to authenticate their spray sculptures over the yeras. I don't know what to think but it frankly strikes me as odd.

I have to agree. All I can do...
I have to agree. All I can do is shrug my shoulders, and say I don't know. I really don't.