
Collection Online as of May 17, 2022
Part of a set. See all set records
(American, 1911-2010)
Wood
Overall: 49 x 80 x 49 cm (19 5/16 x 31 1/2 x 19 5/16 in.)
Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund 2002.29.b
© The Easton Foundation / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY
229C Contemporary
Wit and play are essential elements throughout Louise Bourgeois's work. Here the work's title is a variation on "Blind Man's Bluff," the child's game in which a blindfolded person must look for fellow players using only sound and touch. The artist's revision of "bluff" to "buff" has a dual meaning. It evokes the method of smoothing or "buffing" marble, which was part of the work's production. "Buff" also relates to the sculpture's evocation of nude body parts, both male and female. The allusion to nudity is reinforced by the fabric folds visible at the sculpture's edges, as if clothing has been cast aside.