Jenny HolzerHalf Dead, "Inflammatory Essay" (from Documenta 1982)1982
1982
About the Item
- Creator:Jenny Holzer (1950, American)
- Creation Year:1982
- Dimensions:Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)Width: 17 in (43.18 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Framing:Framing Options Available
- Condition:Very good condition.
- Gallery Location:Toronto, CA
- Reference Number:
Jenny Holzer
Known for taking art out of the traditional “white cube” of galleries and museums and onto the streets, Jenny Holzer is one of the most potent feminist Neo-Conceptual artists of the 20th century. Her most iconic work critiques the information age and consumerism by reclaiming its primary media — conventional print billboards, storefront posters and LED signs.
“I used language because I wanted to offer content that people — not necessarily art people — could understand,” the Ohio-born Holzer told Interview magazine. She received her MFA in painting from Rhode Island School of Design, where her work was influenced by Abstract Expressionism. It was while in the Independent Study Program at the Whitney Museum of American Art that Holzer became inspired to work at the intersection of public art and language.
In the late 1970s, after becoming an active participant in the downtown Manhattan artist collective Colab, which included Tom Otterness and Christy Rupp, Holzer began to create her legendary “Truisms” series. Printing anonymous one-line aphorisms in bold and italicized text on broadsheets, she pasted them up in public spaces all over New York City. The “Truisms” are provocative in questioning how we receive and process information. The work elicits debate and represents a range of perspectives. In an era that saw the rise of street art and graffiti, Holzer’s pithy word art would also find viewers by way of T-shirts, stickers and park benches, into which her slogans were carved.
Holzer’s more combative “Inflammatory Essays” (1979–82) took the form of mass-produced posters on colored paper — each featuring paragraphs as compared to the punch-line structure of “Truisms.” These touched on subjects such as violence, misogyny, power structures and consumerism, all of which have continued to be central in her work.
Starting in 1982 as part of a Public Art Fund project, Holzer projected “Protect me from what I want” and other “Truisms” on the Spectacolor board, a large computerized light signboard in New York City’s Times Square. Her “Abuse of power comes as no surprise,” which has appeared on T-shirts as part of the series, has taken on new life in an increasingly politically divided America.
Just as it did in the 1970s, the forcefulness of her work continues to make both viewers and the art world stop and pay attention. She has had solo exhibitions at the Brooklyn Museum, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Tate Modern in London and elsewhere. She has also created permanent installations including the New York City AIDS Memorial. A 2014 show at New York’s Cheim & Read featured oil-on-linen canvases based on declassified government files pertaining to detainees from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
Find Jenny Holzer prints and sculptures on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Toronto, Canada
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
- The Far ShoreBy Joyce WielandLocated in Toronto, OntarioJoyce Wieland (1931-1998) was one of the most accomplished and versatile Canadian artists of the 20th century. Emerging on the Toronto art scene in the early 1960s, throughout her career Wieland would explore the role of women, the body, nationalism, and intimacy using a variety of mediums. During much of the 1970s, Wieland was consumed by the creation (and recovery) of making her single feature film "The Far Shore". Her all-encompassing approach included writing the script, directing, co-producing, and trying to finance the project, a task that she notoriously despised. The film was loosely inspired by the life and death of the Canadian painter, Tom Thompson...Category
1970s Conceptual Prints and Multiples
MaterialsOffset, Lithograph
- Inflammatory Essay (from Documenta 1982)By Jenny HolzerLocated in Toronto, OntarioJenny Holzer is one of the most important and original artists of the 20th century. Her body of work, with its emphasis on text, is provocative and occasionally frightening, manipulating the language of folk wisdom, pop culture, and government slogan to produce a commentary on global issues including power structures, gender struggle, economics, voting, and warfare. Holzer's iconic "Inflammatory Essays", produced between 1979 and 1982, were first pasted on walls throughout heavily populated metro areas including New York, and shortly after in other cities. Unsigned and commercially produced, they subverted the conventions of advertising, graffiti, and public art. Each essay was in a different eye-catching color to maximize viewers' attention. It was also helpful when one Essay replaced an older one. The texts were derived from her childhood interest in rapturous writings. Holzer tried to emulate a similar style for her essays, yet borrowed from political theorists (notably Mao, Lenin, and Emma Goldman...Category
1980s Conceptual Prints and Multiples
MaterialsOffset, Lithograph
- Imaginary RealitiesBy Lawrence WeinerLocated in Toronto, OntarioLawrence Weiner (1942-2021) is one of the most-distinctive American conceptual artists. His philosophy and aesthetic developed concurrently to artists such as Sol LeWitt. Weiner we...Category
1990s Conceptual Prints and Multiples
MaterialsLithograph, Offset
- End of the USABy Jenny HolzerLocated in Toronto, OntarioJenny Holzer is one of the most important and original artists of the 20th century. Her body of work, with an emphasis on text, is consistently provocative and occasionally frightening, manipulating the language of both pop culture and government slogan to produce commentary on global issues notably power structures and warfare. Holzer's iconic "Inflammatory Essays", produced between 1979 and 1982, were first pasted on walls throughout heavily populated metro areas including New York and other cities. Composed of anonymous statements, printed on friendly or calm colored papers, the statements were influenced by writings of major political figures such as Emma Goldman...Category
1980s Conceptual More Prints
MaterialsOffset
- Hot Property!By General IdeaLocated in Toronto, OntarioGeneral Idea was formed in 1967 as a collective of three Canadian artists in Toronto, Felix Partz, Jorge Zontal and AA Bronson. Over the next 30 years, the ...Category
1970s Conceptual Prints and Multiples
MaterialsScreen, Paper
- Spheres of InfluenceBy Lawrence WeinerLocated in Toronto, OntarioLawrence Weiner (b. 1942) is one of the most-distinctive American conceptual artists. His philosophy and aesthetic developed concurrently to Sol LeWitt yet Weiner has focused far more on (text-based) installation - typically in public spaces. Exhibited at Leo Castelli during the 1970's, Weiner has been an institutional darling with major exhibitions at most of the world's top museums. As a significant portion of his output is temporary installation, his multiples (which are few and far between) are sought-after and cherished by collectors. This rare silkscreen was published in conjunction with Weiner's solo exhibition "SPHERES OF INFLUENCE...Category
1990s Conceptual Prints and Multiples
MaterialsScreen
- Untitled (The Show is Over)By Christopher WoolLocated in New York, NY1993 Offset lithograph on paper Sheet: 46 4/5 x 31 1/5 in. Edition unknown UnsignedCategory
1990s Conceptual Abstract Prints
MaterialsLithograph, Offset
- Fold-out PACE Gallery invitation (hand signed by Robert Irwin)By Robert IrwinLocated in New York, NYRobert Irwin Fold-out PACE Gallery invitation (hand signed by Robert Irwin), 2012 Offset lithograph fold-out invitation (hand signed by Robert Irwin) Boldly signed by Robert Irwin on...Category
2010s Conceptual Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph, Offset
- Movie Treatment for Spiral Jetty, Dwan Gallery PosterLocated in New York, NYRobert Smithson Movie Treatment for Spiral Jetty, Dwan Gallery Poster, 1970 Offset lithograph poster 38 × 22 inches Unframed Rare, historic poster feature...Category
1970s Conceptual Figurative Prints
MaterialsOffset, Lithograph
- Mia San Mia (Hand signed by Hans Haacke)Located in New York, NYHans Haacke Mia San Mia (Hand signed by Hans Haacke), 2001 Hardback monograph (hand signed by Hans Haacke) Signed by Hans Haacke in black marker on the title page 10 × 8 × 1 inches Provenance Hand signed by Hans Haacke for the present owner at a special event held at 192 Books in Manhattan (owned by Paula Cooper) This exquisite European hardcover monograph with dust jacket was hand signed by Hans Haacke in black marker on the title page for the present owner at a special event held at 192 Books in Manhattan (owned by Paula Cooper). Highly collectible. Makes an excellent gift. Published by the Generali Foundation, Austria on the occasion of the eponymous exhibition. About the exhibition: Hans Haacke (born in 1936 in Cologne, GER, has lived in New York, USA, since 1965) focused on "a single problem area: how the country deals with its history and national identity. More than I care for, these questions stir up emotions both in Austria and Germany." Haacke had been originally concerned with physical and biological systems. Very early on, his artistic practice also included the analysis of and reflection on socio-political phenomena. Haacke's work deals with social and political themes. He considers the debates arising from his works - fierce at times - to be an integral part of them. "Mia san mia" (We Are Who We Are...Category
Early 2000s Conceptual Abstract Prints
MaterialsPaper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset
- Rarely seen limited edition Spanish/English protest poster, Signed by BaldessariBy John BaldessariLocated in New York, NYJohn Baldessari Flowers of Life for Central America/Flores de Vida por Centro America (Hand Signed), 1984 Rare Offset Lithograph (Hand signed by Baldessari) 24 3/5 × 18 inches Boldly signed in white sharpie by Baldessari lower front The regular, unsigned edition was only approx. 100, though the present work was, exceptionally, uniquely hand signed by the artist Extremely rare vintage political poster...Category
1980s Conceptual Abstract Prints
MaterialsOffset, Permanent Marker, Lithograph
- Sun and the Moon poster (Hand signed by both Marina Abramovic and Ulay)By Marina AbramovicLocated in New York, NYMarina Abramović & Ulay Sun and the Moon (Hand Signed Poster), 1987 Offset Lithograph Poster Uniquely iigned in ink pen on the front) by BOTH Marina Abramovic and Ulay 25.5 x 19 inches Unframed Extremely uncommon and historic hand signed vintage offset lithograph poster published on the occasion of Marina Abramovic' "Sun and Moon" performance in the late 1980s at the University Art Gallery in San Diego, California by Marina Abramovic and Ulay. The performance artwork took place earlier in their careers. This exhibition poster depicts Marina mysteriously cloaked in a white hooded garment during a live performance. The print was published in an unknown limited edition; the work is uniquely signed by Marina Abramovic. A rare, historic poster...Category
1980s Conceptual Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph, Offset