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Untitled (Mud Animal)
1999
46 x 33 x 24 in. (116.84 x 83.82 x 60.96 cm)
Kathryn Spence (Stuttgart, Germany, 1963 - )
Indestructible Wonder, April 18, 2016 - January 29, 2017, Second Floor, Central and North Galleries, San José Museum of Art.
Process as Paradigm: Works from the Permanent Collection, January 17, 2009 through July 5, 2009, New Wing, Second Floor, South Metro A Gallery, San José Museum of Art.
Is the Medium the Message?: Contemporary Art from the Permanent Collection, March 2, 2002 - June 2, 2002, New Wing, Metro A, Skylight and South Galleries, Second Floor, San José Museum of Art.
Collecting Our Thoughts: The Community Responds to Art in the Permanent Collection, June 23, 2001 - September 23, 2001, New Wing, Metro A, Skylight and South Galleries, Second Floor, San José Museum of Art.
Indestructible Wonder (2016-2017)
An avid birder, gardener, and naturalist, Kathryn Spence exposes a subtle disconnect between nature and the culture of consumerism. She transforms cast-off items and debris into objects of social and ecological portent. Spence’s “mud animals”—made from discarded stuffed animals, old bathrobes, and layers of dirt—assume the drooping posture of a collapsed teddy bear. Whether this ubiquitous childhood companion evokes feelings of defeat, dejection, or abandonment, affection for the object calls “attention to the inseparable connection between the physical and psychological in everyday life.” Spence elaborated, “I want [the mud animals] to seem weathered, like they’re decomposing…we need to be in touch with dirt.” Through these somber, introspective objects, Spence shares her larger conviction: humanity and nature are equally fragile, vulnerable subjects.
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Untitled (Mud Animal)
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Untitled (Mud Animal)
Sculpture
199946 x 33 x 24 in. (116.84 x 83.82 x 60.96 cm)
Kathryn Spence (Stuttgart, Germany, 1963 - )
Object Type: Sculpture
Medium and Support: Stuffed animals, mud, furry bathrobes on wood stool
Credit Line: Museum purchase with funds contributed by the Collection Committee and Beverly and Peter Lipman
Accession Number: 1999.16.01
Exhibition
Indestructible Wonder, April 18, 2016 - January 29, 2017, Second Floor, Central and North Galleries, San José Museum of Art.
Process as Paradigm: Works from the Permanent Collection, January 17, 2009 through July 5, 2009, New Wing, Second Floor, South Metro A Gallery, San José Museum of Art.
Is the Medium the Message?: Contemporary Art from the Permanent Collection, March 2, 2002 - June 2, 2002, New Wing, Metro A, Skylight and South Galleries, Second Floor, San José Museum of Art.
Collecting Our Thoughts: The Community Responds to Art in the Permanent Collection, June 23, 2001 - September 23, 2001, New Wing, Metro A, Skylight and South Galleries, Second Floor, San José Museum of Art.
SJMA Label Text
Indestructible Wonder (2016-2017)
An avid birder, gardener, and naturalist, Kathryn Spence exposes a subtle disconnect between nature and the culture of consumerism. She transforms cast-off items and debris into objects of social and ecological portent. Spence’s “mud animals”—made from discarded stuffed animals, old bathrobes, and layers of dirt—assume the drooping posture of a collapsed teddy bear. Whether this ubiquitous childhood companion evokes feelings of defeat, dejection, or abandonment, affection for the object calls “attention to the inseparable connection between the physical and psychological in everyday life.” Spence elaborated, “I want [the mud animals] to seem weathered, like they’re decomposing…we need to be in touch with dirt.” Through these somber, introspective objects, Spence shares her larger conviction: humanity and nature are equally fragile, vulnerable subjects.
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Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions: - Is the Medium the Message?: Contemporary Art from the Permanent Collection , 3/2/2002 - 6/2/2002
- Process as Paradigm: Works from the Permanent Collection San Jose Museum of Art , 1/17/2009 - 7/5/2009
Dimensions
- Sculpture Dimensions: 46 x 33 x 24 in. (116.84 x 83.82 x 60.96 cm)
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