Martha Rosler

Simon Watson, New York (acquired directly from the artist)
Acquired by the present owner from the above in 1990

Basel, Kunstmuseum, Covering the Real, Kunst und Pressebild, von Warhol bis Tillmans, May - August 2005, n.p., illustrated in color (another example exhibited)
Geneva, BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Political Correct, September - October 2008
Wolfsburg, Kunstmuseum, Interieur Exterieur: Living in Art - From Romantic Interior Painting to the Home Design of the Future, November 2008 - April 2009, pp. 97 and 99, illustrated in color (another example exhibited)

David Campany, Art and Photography, London, 2003, p. 152, illustrated in color

This work is in very good condition overall. There is a slight undulation to some of the sheets. The photograph in the lower right corner of the catalogue illustration exhibits a 1 inch horizontal hard crease located 9 inches from the bottom edge extending from the left edge. Each framed under Plexiglas.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The tragedy of the Vietnam War was often referred to as the "Living Room War," due in part to the way in which the broadcast news media placated the imagery of the news combat in order for them to be projected into American homes. The present work was born from artist Martha Rosler's frustration with the way that that the stark reality of the war was conveyed.  In a set of ten widely-reproduced works made between 1967 and 1972, Rosler collaged images of idyllic domestic interiors gleaned from the widely distributed household magazine House Beautiful together with some of the more controversial war images from Life magazine. Rosler obfuscates the placid separation between the war-ravaged region and domesticity and renders it a visual impossibility. Through Rosler's artistic lens, the conflict becomes refocused and projected into a space of domestic bliss, forcing the viewer to reconcile the war with their own lives.