Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008)

Eco-Echo is a result of the combined technical expertise of Donald Saff and the artistic genius of Robert Rauschenberg. This partnership created works which stretched the boundaries of conception and medium, yet remained true to the artist's intent. "Saff was more than a host and a fabricator-he was a catalyst... the element of discovery was intrinsic to both partners in bringing the projects Saff initiated to fruition" (M. Kushner, Donald Saff: Art in Collaboration, Munich, 2010, p. 11).

In 1992, work began on the Eco-Echo series, when Saff suggested the concept of a windmill to his friend and collaborative partner Robert Rauschenberg. Having just returned from the United Nations Earth Summit on environment and development in Rio de Janeiro, environmental causes were paramount to Rauschenberg --The only way he would go ahead with the project, was if there was a way to make it environmentally friendly. With a base of raw materials such as industrial aluminum, and recycled lead weights on the central element, Saff suggested further enhancing the ecological relevance of the work by installing sonars on the base. These sonars enable the sculpture to only be actively rotating when viewers are in its vicinity. With collage-like elements reproduced on each blade in Rauschenberg's iconic style, Eco-Echo is not only a feat of engineering, but a tribute to the artist's ecological sensibilities.