Language Is Not Transparent. paint and chalk on wall. 72 x 48 inches

–

Language Is Not Transparent. paint and chalk on wall. 72 x 48 inches

–

Notecard (No thought exists…). 1969. ink on notecard. 5 x 8 inches

–

Obsolete. 2007. ink on paper. 11 x 8.5 inches

–

Language is not transparent. 1969. Rubber stamp on paper.  7.25 x 6.75 inches

–

Language is not transparent. 1969. Rubber stamp on graph paper. 9.75 x 7.25 inches

–

American conceptual artist MEL BOCHNER was one of the first artists in the 1960s to introduce language into the visual field. His works range from installations to drawings, prints, and paintings. Preoccupied by language and its influence on vision and perception, he has shifted from a more analytical use of language to an exploration of the way in which color diverts a text from its duty to convey meaning. As a result, language becomes a tool in BOCHNER’s interrogation into how an object—be it a painting, sculpture, mathematical equation, or a complete replacement of the “object” with language itself—can function as a work of art.

Although his manner of painting results in paint drips, smears, and layers that create a textured surface, MEL BOCHNER’s insists on a rigorous drawing style which aims to display his thought process: “make the emotion as visible as the thought.”