Bert Flugelman

Australian sculptor

Herbert Flugelman (28 January 1923 – 26 February 2013), usually known as Bert, was a prominent Australian visual artist, primarily a sculptor, who had many of his works publicly displayed. He is known for his stainless steel geometric public sculptures. Among his best known works are the "Mall's Balls" in Adelaide, and "the Silver Shish Kebab" (Pyramid Tower) in Sydney.

Herbert Flugelman was born in Vienna, Austria, on 28 January 1923, the son of Leopold and Irma Flugelman. As the Nazis came to power in the 1930s, Leopold was the first to come to Australia, in his official capacity as an agent for the German fabric company he worked for. He then arranged visas for his second wife, Annie, and Herbert to come as well. After queuing for three days for a train leaving Vienna, Herbert was initially turned away for not having the right papers. His uncle intervened, telling the guards that they were supposed to be getting rid of Jews, and Herbert was allowed to board. He met Annie in Genoa, Italy, where in 1938 they boarded a boat to Fremantle, Western Australia, before travelling to Sydney. Leopold got a job as a hotel doorman, later becoming manager. Herbert's mother Irma also escaped Australia, initially to London and then moving to the United States after the war, where she remarried. Flugelman first worked as a jackaroo. (although, being a foreign national, he was not allowed to fight In 1952, he contracted polio in Vienna, spending some time being treated in a London hospital. The disease left him with severe disabilities in one arm and one leg. During this period, he also lectured at the City Art Institute in Sydney

After starting his career with painting, Flugelman turned to sculpture in the late 1950s after fire destroyed his studio. He began creating semi figurative expressionist sculptures, then from the late 1960s he helped to lead a new wave of practices, with range of forms that included object based sculptures as well as installations along with works of conceptual and performance art. (who had moved from Sydney at Brook's suggestion), Ian North, Clifford Frith, and Phil Noyce. According to Brook, the EAF was "an engine for shaping beliefs about the meaning of works of art and the point of making them". 2006: Member of the Order of Australia Pyramid Tower was a commissioned work, created as a memorial to William Dobell.

Flugelman died on 26 February 2013 at his home in Bowral, on the Southern Highlands of New South Wales. His memorial service was held at Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park in Sydney. Flugelman's archive is held in the Art Gallery of NSW's National Art Archive.

The following is a partial list of the Flugelman's completed works. Year Work Location Image 1962 high relief sand panels cast in concrete A. O. R., Kurnell, New South Wales 1965 untitled six figure group, cast bronze, commissioned 1964 Goldstein courtyard, University of New South Wales, Kensington, New South Wales 1966–1967 untitled, welded copper and mosaic fountain Bruce Hall, Australian National University, Canberra 1967 NSW Coat of Arms, double sided in oxidised bronze State Office Block, Phillip and Bent Streets, Sydney (demolished 1997) 1973 Continuum, stainless steel sculpture Garden South of Johnson Building, University of Adelaide, Adelaide 1974 Tattooed Lady, painted earthenware sculpture of a naked woman covered with erotic oriental figures Light Square, Adelaide (since 2003), 1975–1995 at Art Gallery of South Australia 1977 Spheres, stainless steel sculpture (popularly known as the Mall's Balls, and sometimes Bert's Balls) Rundle Mall, Adelaide 1978 Spiral and Wave, stainless steel sculpture Outside Wollongong City Gallery, Wollongong, New South Wales 1978 Pyramid Tower (Dobell Memorial), stainless steel sculpture (Silver Shish Kebab) Spring Street, Sydney (initially at Martin Place, Sydney) 1978/1979 Tumbling Cubes, stainless steel sculpture Margaret Timpson Town Park, Belconnen, Canberra 1982 Cones, stainless steel sculpture, commissioned 1976 Sculpture Garden of the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra 1985 Gateway to Mount Keira, stainless steel sculpture University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 1985 stainless steel sculpture Penrith Regional Gallery, Emu Plains, New South Wales 1988 Winged Figure, stainless steel sculpture (Lawrence Hargrave Memorial) University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 1988 three sculptures Melbourne Hotel Development 1995/1996 stainless steel, granite, bronze, sandstone sculpture private collection 1999/2000 Federation Arch, stainless steel sculpture Orange Botanical Gardens, Orange, New South Wales 2004/2005 Caryatid minotaur, stainless steel sculpture 2005 Tribute, sculpture honouring Richard Llewellyn, stainless steel and black granite Adelaide Festival Centre, Adelaide 2006 Slow Spiral, stainless steel sculpture, installed 2007 Queens Plaza, Brisbane 2007 Tetrapus, stainless steel sculpture 2007 Three sculptures from the Transition series Library, Wollongong University, Wollongong, New South Wales 2009 Serpent II, stainless steel sculpture Foyer, 28 Freshwater Place, Melbourne 2009Stainless steel sculptureCorbett Plaza, Bong Bong Street, Bowral NSW 2011AmmoniteFor the "Sculpture by the Sea" outdoor exhibition in Sydney