Robert Rauschenberg (American, 1925-2008)
Artist’s Rights Today, 1981
Embossed lithograph on paper
39.5 x 27 in
Gift of Carol Quillen, 18th President of Davidson College, and George McLendon
Robert Rauschenberg is a prolific painter, sculptor, and graphic artist who attended the iconic Black Mountain College in Asheville, NC. Under the instruction of Joseph Albers, a famous abstract artists and color theorist, Rauschenberg began creating artwork that surpassed and encompassed many art movements. His work is often described as part of Pop Art, Abstract Expressionism, and Neo-Dada. His work perhaps falls more accurately under Neo-Dada.
The Neo-Dada movement, coming out of the Dada “avant-garde” movement, was driven by the Cold War. The movement consisted of mass media and collage that mocked the political landscape, from war to consumerism to capitalism. Rauschenberg described his mocking works as “Combines-” a mixture of sculpture and painting.
Our work is a print of one of these “combines,” titled Artist’s Rights Today. The work consists of a pinned American flag sock and images of horses, boats, and houses. At the bottom in a quick script the title makes an appearance. The work is credited to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in Washington D.C. Rauschenberg was known for making posters for himself primarily, but also other national organizations such as the UN and UNESCO. Perhaps this work was made for the DCCC or as a joke. Considering the Neo-Dada emphasis on absurdity and humor, either option seems plausible.
–Sarah Willoughby ’25
Sources:
https://www.theartstory.org/movement/neo-dada/