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Untitled
Artist
Erick Swenson
(American, born 1972)
Date2000
MediumMixed media
DimensionsOverall: 91 x 40 x 40 in. (231.14 x 101.6 x 101.6 cm)
Credit LineCollection of the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Gift of Anne and John Marion
Object number2002.59.A-B
Status
Not on viewCopyright© Erick Swenson
Category
Label TextErick Swenson’s Untitled, 2000, is a dramatic hand-painted figure resembling a dog or fawn. The creature is swept upward from the ground by a billowing red and black cape hooked to its tail. The small, pale animal bares its teeth, adding tension to the moment, yet the story behind this strange event is undisclosed. The animal is both a creature in action and an oversized porcelain figurine.
Swenson’s works, such as Untitled, are the result of a hybrid of influences, including animation, movie and stage sets, and natural history dioramas. Although the artist mimics the naturalistic execution of diorama objects, however, he does so in order to create fantastical scenes. Swenson’s strategy of unexpectedly distributing the weight of his forms contributes to the surreal quality of his objects. The entire piece comes to rest on the animal’s small front hoof, making the overall feeling and appearance precarious.
In Untitled, the illusion of movement and physicality is seen in the cape, but the source of its power—whether it be the wind, a person, or an apparition—is unaccounted for. Untitled leaves us to piece together a narrative based on a few visual clues. The animal could be wild, but the three thin leather straps attached to its neck and hind legs might also suggest domestication. The cape is commonly associated with magic, but its connotations extend to such opposites as Dracula and Little Red Riding Hood. In Swenson’s stripped down but impeccable illusionism, the story is unresolved but strangely familiar.
Swenson’s works, such as Untitled, are the result of a hybrid of influences, including animation, movie and stage sets, and natural history dioramas. Although the artist mimics the naturalistic execution of diorama objects, however, he does so in order to create fantastical scenes. Swenson’s strategy of unexpectedly distributing the weight of his forms contributes to the surreal quality of his objects. The entire piece comes to rest on the animal’s small front hoof, making the overall feeling and appearance precarious.
In Untitled, the illusion of movement and physicality is seen in the cape, but the source of its power—whether it be the wind, a person, or an apparition—is unaccounted for. Untitled leaves us to piece together a narrative based on a few visual clues. The animal could be wild, but the three thin leather straps attached to its neck and hind legs might also suggest domestication. The cape is commonly associated with magic, but its connotations extend to such opposites as Dracula and Little Red Riding Hood. In Swenson’s stripped down but impeccable illusionism, the story is unresolved but strangely familiar.