Leo Castelli Gallery
18 East 77th Street, New York, NY 10021 (212) 249-4470 tel (212) 249-5220 fx www.castelligallery.com / info@castelligallery.com

Ed Ruscha / Richard Artschwager
April 27 - July 1, 2004

This dual-artist exhibition addresses the many accomplishments of Ed Ruscha and Richard Artschwager, over their long and influential careers, with paintings, drawings, sculpture, prints, and multiples. Both of these prolific artists have produced distinct bodies of work over the last forty years, and yet it can be said that many of their underlying themes have a shared intellectual origin. Full of dry wit, their works both reflect and defer a sense of anonymous Americana with a banal clarity. Theirs is a world of slippery intentions, and yet is strikingly familiar all the same.

The exhibition attempts to highlight the bridges that exist between Ruscha’s West Coast Cool of Pop and Artschwager, the ironic East Coast Cousin. Both artists share an interest in the ideas and suggestions of the Surrealist movement, which makes them quite different from other Pop artists of their generation. One theme often visited by the artists is that of language. This is best exemplified by Ruscha’s series of liquid letter drawings and prints, such as OOO (1970) and Stardust (1966), where words and phrases are turned into subjects, as are the letters that compose them. Artschwager, in turn, has dealt with the elements of language, choosing to focus on Quotation Marks (1980) and question marks like Pregunta II (1983) as forms unto themselves.

Artschwager and Ruscha also often deal with approximation, where the image of the work is not fully defined, either visually or subjectively. This can be seen in Artschwager’s horsehair constructions like Hairbox (1990) and celotex paintings like Upper Right Corner Hit (1969), and in Ruscha’s series of shadow images like Ship (1986) and Ballerina (1988).

Some additional themes that oscillate between the two artists include the notions of time, sustenance, location, and inventory. Perhaps the most beautiful connection between them is their love of humble materials, such as food and formica, that can be applied in an impersonal manner, which lends many of their creations an intriguing opaque blankness.

This exhibition is co-organized by Brooke Alexander and the Leo Castelli Gallery, and is on display at both venues through July 1st.