Das Erdtelephon
The Earth Telephone
Joseph Beuys, German, 1921 - 1986
Geography:
Made in Germany, Europe
Date:
1968-1971Medium:
Siemens telephone, earth clod with grass and roots, wooden plank Dimensions:
7 7/8 × 30 × 19 1/4 inches (20 × 76.2 × 48.9 cm)Copyright:
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, BonnCuratorial Department:
Contemporary Art
2013-158-1Credit Line:
Gift of Keith L. and Katherine Sachs, 2013
Made in Germany, Europe
Date:
1968-1971Medium:
Siemens telephone, earth clod with grass and roots, wooden plank Dimensions:
7 7/8 × 30 × 19 1/4 inches (20 × 76.2 × 48.9 cm)Copyright:
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, BonnCuratorial Department:
Contemporary Art
* Gallery 170, Modern and Contemporary Art, first floor
Accession Number:2013-158-1Credit Line:
Gift of Keith L. and Katherine Sachs, 2013
Label:
Erdtelephon exemplifies Joseph Beuys’s understanding of sculpture as active material and potential energy rather than as a static shape. For Beuys, this piece constituted a material statement on the nature of energy. It is a “social sculpture”—a concept of art as an interdisciplinary and participatory process. Earth and telephone are paired as visual manifestations of the transforming power of human communication. The artist believed that every individual possesses creative power and, as such, is responsible for helping to create a democratic, sustainable social order.
Erdtelephon exemplifies Joseph Beuys’s understanding of sculpture as active material and potential energy rather than as a static shape. For Beuys, this piece constituted a material statement on the nature of energy. It is a “social sculpture”—a concept of art as an interdisciplinary and participatory process. Earth and telephone are paired as visual manifestations of the transforming power of human communication. The artist believed that every individual possesses creative power and, as such, is responsible for helping to create a democratic, sustainable social order.
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