3408 - JOHN McCRACKEN

JOHN McCRACKEN (Berkeley 1934–2011 New York City) Signal. 1991. Polyester resin and wood. Signed, dated, and titled on the reverse: McCracken 1991 "SIGNAL". 13.5 × 244 × 19 cm. Provenance: - Galerie Froment & Putman, Paris. - Private collection, Switzerland, acquired from the above gallery in 1991. - Private collection, Switzerland, inherited in 2019. Exhibited: - Paris 1991, John McCracken, Galerie Froment & Putman, May 16–July 12, 1991. - Mouans-Sartoux 1994, Vue du collectionneur, Château de Mouans - Espace de l’Art Concret, September 3, 1994–March 12, 1995. The 1991 work “Signal” continues John McCracken’s exploration, begun in the 1960s, of the relationship between painting and sculpture. His starting point was the “Planks,” first created in 1966: narrow, monochrome forms that rest between the floor and the wall and, through their color and unusual positioning in space, challenge the traditional distinction between the two genres. By the early 1970s, the artist had expanded his sculptural vocabulary to include “Wall Pieces” attached directly to the wall, a category to which this work also belongs. In “Signal,” McCracken applies this central artistic question to an elongated, horizontally mounted form. Viewed from the front, the work appears almost like a narrow strip of color, while from the side its depth and sculptural quality become apparent. The edge running diagonally across the front disrupts the object’s strict horizontality and, depending on the viewing angle and the angle of the light, creates the impression of a tapering form, although the beam does not actually narrow. At the same time, the intense green gives the geometric form a striking “signal” effect and may well have played a role in the choice of title. For McCracken, color is thus far more than mere surface treatment; it is an essential component of his sculptural design. The apparent simplicity of these forms belies the complexity of their production. McCracken’s works are often made from precisely constructed wooden cores covered with fiberglass and pigmented polyester resin, then sanded in numerous stages and finally polished to a high gloss. This painstaking process produces a flawless surface on which the traces of production largely disappear. This contrast between craftsmanship and seemingly industrial perfection is characteristic of McCracken’s oeuvre.