Robert Indiana

Eleanor Ward (acquired directly from the artist)
Acquired by the present owner from the above

Carl J. Weinhardt, Jr., Robert Indiana, New York, 1990, p. 59, illustrated

This work is in good and sound condition overall. There is evidence of wear and handling to the wood and wood base, resulting in various cracks, dents and splitting throughout, many of which appear inherent to the artist's choice of found medium. The edges of the base have worn down and exhibit spots of paint loss and splitting to the wood. *Please note the auction begins at 9:30 am on November 14th.*
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.

"Indiana's skill...was evident in the group of wood sculptures he included in his 1964 show at the Stable Gallery. Made from discarded round columns originally used as shipping masts in the nineteenth century, then recycled for use as construction materials in the Coenties Slip warehouses that were in the process of being demolished, the sculptures celebrated humanity while also recognized its underlying pathos. Indiana had experimented with the round form once before, in 1960, with a pole salvaged from Jack Youngerman's loft, which he had stenciled with the names of places in the Coenties Slip neighborhood. Faced in 1964 with a dwindling supply of rectangular wood beams to make herms, he turned to columns as a substitute. Rather than inscribe them with the nouns that had decorated his herms, he stenciled the verbs 'HUG,' 'ERR,' 'EAT,' and 'DIE' in horizontal bands around the columns' circumferences, thereby investing the scultpures with multivalent metaphysical and personal meanings. The staccato repition of the words, rendered in white gothic letters, registered as a visual incantation of human frailty and forgiveness." - Barbara Haskell (in "Robert Indiana: The American Dream," Exh. Cat., New York, Whitney Museum of American Art, Robert Indiana: Beyond Love, 2013, pp. 98-99)