Dan Colen

Peres Projects, Los Angeles

Private Collection

Sale: Phillips de Pury & Company, New York, Contemporary Art Part II, 9 November 2010, Lot 201

Acquired directly from the above by the present owner

Colour: The colours in the catalogue illustration are fairly accurate. Condition: This work is in very good condition. Very close inspection reveals a stable drying crack to one of the areas of very thick impasto towards the centre of the left edge. No restoration is apparent when examined under ultraviolet light.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Throughout his career to date, Dan Colen has challenged and re-invented traditional concepts of painting, forging a body of work that defies easy categorisation whilst transcending the limitations of conventional media. Part of a group of young, New York based artists - including Nate Lowman and Ryan McGinley -  who have become collectively known as the ‘Bowery School,’ Colen has employed a variety of different materials within his work, including chewing gum, flower petals and dirt amongst other organic ingredients.  The artist has also explored the potential of oil on canvas as a means of imitating other media: Untitled (Birdshit) is a witty exemplar of this latter development. Within this work and other pieces from the series, Colen has splattered paint onto the canvas in energetic swathes to emulate the appearance of a multitude of bird droppings, creating a composition that causes the viewer to question their own perception and expectation.

Prior to an exhibition of the Birdshit paintings in 2007, Colen recalled the creative process behind the forging of these paintings, declaring that: “I kind of threw paint at [the canvases] in different ways so they end up looking like they are made of bird shit. They vary in size, touch and colour. Some of them look like Pollocks, some look very realistic, others are painterly, some are dumb, some are elegant, some are beautiful… What excites me is the idea of hypothetical pigeons being the performers, rather than me, so all the shit is the residue of their activity…” (Dan Colen, ‘My Paintings Look Like Shit’, The Guardian, 16 February 2007, n.p.). In its radical re-interpretation of art historical precedent and imaginative use of a traditional medium, Untitled (Birdshit) cleverly epitomises Colen’s subversive sense of humour and stands as an important example of this pioneering artist’s highly innovative practice.