R.I.P. Rauschenberg

Oh no, another one of my favorite prolific artists has passed! A mastermind of all mediums, Robert Rauschenberg transcended all boundaries of art. He was known to be a printmaker and set designer, a painter, a photographer as well as compose and choreograph. According to the news, Rauschenberg suffered from heart failure at his home in Florida on Monday, he was 82.

I was always fascinated mostly by his unusual object installation sculptures, with overlapping paint and prints. My favorite when I was a student was BED. When I moved to California, my friend Kutmah and I went to see some contemp art show, and it was one of the pieces. I got very close to it, and my heart was pounding. I was excited to see it up close in all it's tattered glory. There was this energy being put out by being so close to his work. I can't explain it. It made me aware of reckless abandon and to not dismiss common objects as less beautiful. (very similar to Duchamp) Don't tell anyone, but I reached out for the first time in a museum and touched it. I know, I know, very classless of me.

How can you forget "Monogram" the piece with the stuffed GOAT!?

In the New York Times article by Michael Kimmelman there is this quote by the artist:

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“I really feel sorry for people who think things like soap dishes or mirrors or Coke bottles are ugly,” he once said, “because they’re surrounded by things like that all day long, and it must make them miserable.”

The remark reflected the optimism and generosity of spirit that Mr. Rauschenberg became known for. His work was likened to a St. Bernard: uninhibited and mostly good-natured. He could be the same way in person. When he became rich, he gave millions of dollars to charities for women, children, medical research, other artists and Democratic politicians.

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He also stated “Screwing things up is a virtue,” when he was 74. “Being correct is never the point. I have an almost fanatically correct assistant, and by the time she re-spells my words and corrects my punctuation, I can’t read what I wrote. Being right can stop all the momentum of a very interesting idea.”

Comments

[my love for you.]

i just found out last night that he died.
oneof my favorite pieces of all time the erased de kooning drawing.so amazingly brilliant.