Reconstruction

1959
(American, b. 1930)
Framed: 154 x 114.5 x 4 cm (60 5/8 x 45 1/16 x 1 9/16 in.); Unframed: 155 x 111.7 cm (61 x 44 in.)
© Jasper Johns / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY
This artwork is known to be under copyright.
Location: not on view

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Did You Know?

Jasper Johns was awarded the Medal of Freedom, bestowed by President Barack Obama in 2011.

Description

In the encaustic technique, pigment is suspended in wax that is heated and used as paint, and dries quickly once it is applied to the canvas. The gesture of the artist’s hand and the strokes and drips of the brushwork are thus readily apparent. Johns also applied a piece of extra canvas to this work, folding it into the surface to create a three-part composition. The title suggests that the painting really only has meaning in the mind of the spectator, who “reconstructs” the work according to the basic vocabulary of marks and materials that the artist presents.
Reconstruction

Reconstruction

1959

Jasper Johns

(American, b. 1930)
America, 20th century

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