Untitled

<p>Robert Rauschenberg’s fascination with methods and materials led to numerous experiments that pushed the boundaries of a wide range of media, including painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking, and drawing. Along with fellow artist Jasper Johns, Rauschenberg charted a viable path out of Abstract Expressionism, the predominant artistic practice when he emerged during the 1950s.</p> <p>Rauschenberg is best known for the Combine, a painting-sculpture hybrid that integrated humble objects, ephemeral materials, and found images into works that bridge what he called “the gap between art and life.” <em>Untitled</em> is an early work from this seminal series. A sock, a postcard, and an army-flare parachute are among the used and discarded remnants of everyday life held in balance by the expressive brush-strokes and spatters of paint. Echoing this application, the strings of the parachute drip like paint from the canvas, forming a catenary, the curve imposed by the force of gravity on a string suspended freely from two points. With this rupture of the picture plane, the fictive space of the artwork’s surface engages the actual space occupied by the viewer.</p>