Lot Essay
Please note that this work will be included in the forthcoming Catalogue Raisonné of paintings and sculpture being prepared by Simon Salama-Caro.
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LOVE
Details
Robert Indiana (b. 1928)
LOVE
stamped with the artist’s signature, date and number '© 1966-2000 R INDIANA 8/8’ (on the lower interior edge of the V)
polychrome aluminum
18 x 18 x 9 in. (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm.)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000. This work is number eight from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs.
LOVE
stamped with the artist’s signature, date and number '© 1966-2000 R INDIANA 8/8’ (on the lower interior edge of the V)
polychrome aluminum
18 x 18 x 9 in. (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm.)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000. This work is number eight from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs.
Provenance
Guy Pieters Gallery, Paris
Acquired from the above by the present owner
Acquired from the above by the present owner
Further Details
“Indiana had extracted a commonplace, often abused word from popular culture and transformed it into a powerfully resonate art object, successfully resisting the elitist equation between quality and scarcity and forcing a reexamination of the relationship between fine art and popular culture” (B. Haskell, Robert Indiana Beyond Love, exh. cat. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 2013, p. 139).
Robert Indiana’s sculpture, LOVE, is undeniably iconic. The bold, hard-edged font and color of the four individual letters, each of which fit perfectly in its respective quadrant, coalesce into one celebrated artwork. What makes LOVE special is its unique ability to simultaneously have both highly public and private meanings and to be recognized as both fine and popular art. During the 1960s, the free love movement adapted LOVE as a symbol of their cultural revolution. Moreover, the image has since been commoditized into a wide array of mass-produced merchandise such as t-shirts, paper weights, and magnets, consequently making LOVE one of the most recognized works of Pop art. Despite LOVE’s adaptability and wide spread fame, the work still holds onto its intimate significance to Indiana. For example, the brilliant red Indiana uses in this sculpture references the red of the Phillips 66 sign which towered over his father’s workplace and the cerulean blue alludes to the open Indiana sky he grew up admiring.
Indiana’s text based works such as LOVE set a new precedent of text appropriation. His incorporation of text, as well as font and format, from the world around him into his artwork has since inspired contemporary artists such as Jenny Holzer, Ed Ruscha, and Glenn Ligon.
Over the course of his career, Indiana has continued to work with this LOVE template; he explores the power of the image by modifying the work through formal qualities of scale, color, and medium—even working with the Hebrew, Chinese, and Spanish translations.
Robert Indiana’s sculpture, LOVE, is undeniably iconic. The bold, hard-edged font and color of the four individual letters, each of which fit perfectly in its respective quadrant, coalesce into one celebrated artwork. What makes LOVE special is its unique ability to simultaneously have both highly public and private meanings and to be recognized as both fine and popular art. During the 1960s, the free love movement adapted LOVE as a symbol of their cultural revolution. Moreover, the image has since been commoditized into a wide array of mass-produced merchandise such as t-shirts, paper weights, and magnets, consequently making LOVE one of the most recognized works of Pop art. Despite LOVE’s adaptability and wide spread fame, the work still holds onto its intimate significance to Indiana. For example, the brilliant red Indiana uses in this sculpture references the red of the Phillips 66 sign which towered over his father’s workplace and the cerulean blue alludes to the open Indiana sky he grew up admiring.
Indiana’s text based works such as LOVE set a new precedent of text appropriation. His incorporation of text, as well as font and format, from the world around him into his artwork has since inspired contemporary artists such as Jenny Holzer, Ed Ruscha, and Glenn Ligon.
Over the course of his career, Indiana has continued to work with this LOVE template; he explores the power of the image by modifying the work through formal qualities of scale, color, and medium—even working with the Hebrew, Chinese, and Spanish translations.
Brought to you by
Edward Tang