Nate and Catherine,
this is called "Polke's collected works" by Sigmar Polke. Laquer on burlap. 15 3/4" x 59" from 1969. It is a painting of a standardized book collection, like one might see at any other person's home. I think it plays with the idea of illusionism, both in painting and in terms of the outward appearance of our book collections giving the illusion of some social or intellectual status. Mark Twain said "A classic is something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read." In doing my job assisting a designer, i.e. going into wealthier people's homes, I am always struck by the vast collections of untouched somewhat repulsive editions of book kits that adorn their bookshelves, the types that are all approximately the same burnt orange color, that still look so new that you know they've never been read. no use, no character to them. Unlike some tattered first edition book that you can find at a used book store, that is purchased individually. Getting back to Polke, I think there is a humorous pop sentiment to this piece, as well as his other works. Anyway, Nate this image came to mind in relation to your discussion of bookcases as monikers for intellect.
JC
My aunt has a huge home she is building in PA. They are very excited about including a library... They have collected many old books that JC speaks about ...the old orangish fabric.... and yes.... they dont usually read them. I find it silly... a fabrication of who they think they are. In reality they enjoy reading many contemporary fictions.. particularly their teenage daughter. Form over function I suppose.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy looking through all the design magazines as well. Im sure i could implicate my own home in its reliance on form over function. This is something I think about often. Im highly interested in how a home functions to promote creativity of its inhabitants. Whats too much of this and how minimal is just enough.
Perhaps the history of these books stand for some sort of lofty ideal of what they could do.... or they just got a good deal at an auction or estate sale. I dont know
xtina
this is a great thread. i'm also interested in how the home promotes creativity. i am still struggling with how to get this, so far my primary interest, onto paper in the studio.
ReplyDeletei think we could all take what jordan suggest to the extreme and design book collections for the people we wish we could be. i think if one acknowledges that one does this than he or she is free to do it however much he/she wants and to be as many people as possible. in other words, it becomes an art project.
jordan if you were superrich and could have a library of pretentious first editions which ones would you want your friends to see?
ulysses is the classic example of the book everyone talked about and no one (but a few) read.
and all this reminds me of a strange girl i went to high school with who for a year conspicuously lugged around don quixote in the original olde english. did she read it? did she like it? does she remember it now? if she turns up at a high school reunion i'm gonna ask her...
(if i said i never did this it would be a lie. i remember doing it with a big grey book on the theories of math when i was a teenager. lame!)