The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 22, 2023

Untitled

1990

Robert Gober

(American, b. 1954)

America, 20th century

Wax, wood, leather shoe, cotton fabric, human hair

Overall: 29.6 x 16 x 51.2 cm (11 5/8 x 6 5/16 x 20 3/16 in.)

Dorothea Wright Hamilton Fund 2003.226

© Robert Gober, Courtesy Matthew Marks Gallery

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

Gober expertly applied individual human hairs to the sculptural rendering of the leg in this work.

Description

At once disturbing and intriguing, Untitled is an immaculately crafted wax leg that appears to be sticking out of the gallery wall. One can note the expertly applied individual human hairs and beat-up leather brogues the artist wore for weeks to humanize the sculpture. Gober is among the generation of artists that emerged during the 1980s to confront divisive political issues that centered upon the human body, including the AIDS crisis, gay rights, women’s rights, and censorship. A fragment of a person, Untitled is a mournful reminder of the lives that have been deeply affected by such traumas.

Inscriptions

Inscription

Signed on wood mount for attaching leg to wall.

Provenance
Collection of the artist; acquired by the CMA from Matthew Marks Gallery, New York in 2003.
Citations
Cleveland Museum of Art, David Franklin, and C. Griffith Mann. Treasures from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2012. Reproduced p. 339; mentioned p. 338
Kotik, Charlotta. “The Century’s 25 Most Influential Artists: Inside Out.” ARTnews (May 1999). Reproduced p.129
Gober, Robert, and Theodora Vischer. Robert Gober: Sculptures and Installations, 1979-2007. Basel, Switzerland: Schaulager, 2007. Reproduced p. 254, Fig. 5
Extensions: Aspects of the Figure. Exh. Cat. West Hartford, CT: University of Hartford, 1998. Reproduced p. 26-27
Donadio, Emmie. 13 Alumni Artists. Exh. Cat. Middlebury, VT: Middlebury College Museum of Art, 2000. Reproduced on cover and pgs. 14 and 37
“Feature.” Maine Antique Digest (July 2000). Reproduced p. 27-E
“13 Alumni Artists.” Exhibition calendar brochure. Middlebury, VT: Middlebury College Museum of Art (Winter/Spring 2000)
“Robert Gober, The United States Pavilion 49th Venice Biennale.” Pamphlet (June 10-November 4, 2001).
Exhibition history

Reality Bites: Approaches to Representation in American Sculpture. Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL (April 11 - June 28, 1998).

Extensions: Aspects of the Figure. Joseloff Gallery, Hartford Art School, University of Hartford, West Hartford, CT (November 12, 1998 - January 17, 1999).

The Body in Question: Tracing, Displacing and Remaking the Human Figure in Contemporary Art. The Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY (July 6 - August 22, 1999).

13 Alumni Artists. Middlebury College Museum of Art, Middlebury, VT (May 19 - December 10, 2000).

Transformer. Porin Taidemuseo, Pori, Finland (September 14 - November 11, 2002).

Body Proxy: Clothing in Contemporary Art. Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (organizer) (September 1-December 13, 2015).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2003.226