John McCracken
John McCracken (1934-2011) Black Block
lacquer, fiberglass, plywood 15 1/2 x 18 x 8 1/2 in. 1966 Provenance: David Zwirner, New York Private Collection Private Collection Exhibited: Los Angeles, The Museum of Contemporary Art, A Minimal Future? Art as Object 1958-1968, March-August 2004 New York, Zwirner & Wirth, John McCracken: Early Sculpture, September-October 2005 New York, David Zwirner, John McCracken: Works from 1963-2011, September-October 2013 Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Buenos Aires, Geometric Obsession: American School 1965-2015, 17 October 2015-present Literature: Los Angeles, The Museum of Contemporary Art, A Minimal Future? Art as Object 1958-1968, 2004, illustrated, p. 29 New York, Zwirner & Wirth, John McCracken: Early Sculpture, 2005, illustrated , pp. 15 and 61 C. Morgan; D. Kuspit; S. Westfall, Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Buenos Aires, Geometric Obsession: American School 1965-2015, illustrated p. 165
“My works are minimal and reduced, but also maximal. I try to make them concise, clear statements in threedimensional form, and also to take them to a breathtaking level of beauty.” These are the words of artist John McCracken, a revolutionary Minimalist also associated with LA’s Cool School and the Light and Space Movement. He is perhaps best known for his Planks, narrow rectangular boards, finished in polished monochrome and leaned against a wall. McCracken envisioned the Planks as a link between the world of physical reality on the ground and the realm of artistic imagination on the wall. He produced the first of these forms in 1966, the same year that he created Black Block. The 1960s was a formative time for McCracken, during which he produced much of his most celebrated work. To create his monochrome finish, McCracken coated wood and fiberglass with resin, polishing their surfaces smooth and applying thin stains of paint. The result is a synthesis of color and form that captivates the viewer, reflecting and enveloping the surrounding space. Influenced by first generation Minimalists Donald Judd, Dan Flavin, and Carl Andre, McCracken created rich and refined finishes on sharp geometric forms. He often described his work as his idea of an extraterrestrial creation. McCracken’s aesthetic is one deeply rooted in a West Coast style while at the same time otherworldly.
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