Art in Flight

An American sculptor whose works reflect his love of aviation and space technology, John Safer (b. 1922) twists metal and plastic into soaring, angular forms, with mirrorlike surfaces that manipulate light and color. Striving for simplicity, he gives materiality to ideals and concepts in works like Limits of Infinity, Unity and Bird of Peace. Finn's sensitive photographs (in 138 color plates) capture Safer's shapes in all their ambient power, fluid asymmetry and chromatic intensity. Boyne, former director of the National Air and Space Museum, follows Safer's stylistic evolution from constructivist compositions to biomorphic abstractions and his current monumental works. (Dec.)