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Lot Essay
'Material, space and color are the main aspects of visual art' (D. Judd, quoted in D. Elger (ed.), Donald Judd: Colorist, exh. cat., Sprengel Musuem, Hannover 2000, p. 11)
At over three meters wide, the progression of five stainless steel units that comprises Donald Judd's Untitled, is a striking manifestation of the artist's views on the importance of material, space and colour within art. Fabricated out of industrial stainless steel inserted with sheets of blue and cadmium red Plexiglass, the internal and external dimensions of these objects (and their precise position on the wall) conjures up an intoxicating play of space, light and shadow. Central to Judd's artistic philosophy was his belief that the spatial illusionism inherent in painting needed to be abandoned and a new language of visual representation adopted. 'Three dimensions are real space' he said, 'that gets rid of the problem of illusionism and literal space, space in and around marks and colours-which is riddance of one of the salient and most objectionable relics of European art' (D. Judd, quoted in D. Elger (ed.), Donald Judd: Colorist, exh. cat., Sprengel Musuem, Hannover 2000, p. 11).
Beyond its three-dimensionality, Untitled contains another of Judd's key areas of exploration-that of colour. When combined with the grey stainless steel, the blue and cadmium red recessed Plexiglas creates a dramatic play of light and shadow on the contrasting surfaces. The shifting volumes result in a play of shadows that seem to emanate from within the depths of the sculpture. Judd regarded colour as an integral part of sculpture, and was attracted to Plexiglas for its brilliant, intrinsic colour,'I like the colour' he once said, 'and I like the quality of cadmium red.other than a gray of that value, seems to be the only colour that really makes an object sharp and defines it contours and angles' (Ibid., p. 17).
'Three dimensions are real space ... that gets rid of the problem of illusionism and literal space, space in and around marks and colourswhich is riddance of one of the salient and most objectionable relics of European art (D. Judd, quoted in D. Elger (ed.), Donald Judd: Colorist, exh. cat., Sprengel Musuem, Hannover 2000, p. 11).
At over three meters wide, the progression of five stainless steel units that comprises Donald Judd's Untitled, is a striking manifestation of the artist's views on the importance of material, space and colour within art. Fabricated out of industrial stainless steel inserted with sheets of blue and cadmium red Plexiglass, the internal and external dimensions of these objects (and their precise position on the wall) conjures up an intoxicating play of space, light and shadow. Central to Judd's artistic philosophy was his belief that the spatial illusionism inherent in painting needed to be abandoned and a new language of visual representation adopted. 'Three dimensions are real space' he said, 'that gets rid of the problem of illusionism and literal space, space in and around marks and colours-which is riddance of one of the salient and most objectionable relics of European art' (D. Judd, quoted in D. Elger (ed.), Donald Judd: Colorist, exh. cat., Sprengel Musuem, Hannover 2000, p. 11).
Beyond its three-dimensionality, Untitled contains another of Judd's key areas of exploration-that of colour. When combined with the grey stainless steel, the blue and cadmium red recessed Plexiglas creates a dramatic play of light and shadow on the contrasting surfaces. The shifting volumes result in a play of shadows that seem to emanate from within the depths of the sculpture. Judd regarded colour as an integral part of sculpture, and was attracted to Plexiglas for its brilliant, intrinsic colour,'I like the colour' he once said, 'and I like the quality of cadmium red.other than a gray of that value, seems to be the only colour that really makes an object sharp and defines it contours and angles' (Ibid., p. 17).
'Three dimensions are real space ... that gets rid of the problem of illusionism and literal space, space in and around marks and colourswhich is riddance of one of the salient and most objectionable relics of European art (D. Judd, quoted in D. Elger (ed.), Donald Judd: Colorist, exh. cat., Sprengel Musuem, Hannover 2000, p. 11).