Cotton Puffs, Q-Tips, Smoke and Mirrors: The Drawings of Ed Ruscha

Whitney Museum Of American Art; Rowell, Margit; Butler, Cornelia H.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0874271401 ISBN 13: 9780874271409

Publisher: Whitney Museum of American Art,U.S., 2004

An exceptional copy; fine in an equally fine dw. Particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight, bright, clean and especially sharp-cornered. Literally as new.; 8vo 8" - 9" tall; 259 pages; Physical desc. : 259 p. : chiefly ill. (some col. ) ; 29 cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. 249-251) and indexes. Catalogue of an exhibition held at the Whitney Museum of American Art, Jun. 24 - 26 Sept. , 2004; the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, Oct. 17, 2004-Jan. 17, 2005; and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, Feb. 13-May 30, 2005. Subject: Ruscha, Edward - Exhibitions. Summary: Enigmatic paintings, drawings, and photographic books of gasoline stations, apartment buildings, palm trees, and vacant lots have made Ed Ruscha (born 1937) one of America's most important and influential contemporary artists. The first museum retrospective of Ruscha's drawings highlights his genius for the wry and deadpan juxtaposition of words and objects. Featuring some 90 drawings from the past four decades, the exhibition includes examples made with conventional drawing materials, such as graphite and pastel, and unorthodox materials, such as gunpowder, vegetables juices, and tobacco stains, to name just a few. The title of the exhibition, Cotton Puffs, Q-Tips®, Smoke and Mirrors, is a quote from Ruscha and refers to his drawing tools (cotton puffs and Q-tips) and secondly to his illusory effects (smoke and mirrors). Ruscha casts a critical eye on the shifting emblems of American popular culture in the form of classic Hollywood logos and stylized gas stations. He also embraces language as the very subject of his work. In a variety of scripts and styles-from Gothic to longhand, from ribbonlike lettering to words that seem poured rather than printed-Ruscha gives words physical voice. Beautifully rendered with meticulous precision, his art is one of subtle wit and calculated understatement.