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Ron Nagle

Untitled (Cup)

Maker

Ron Nagle (American, b. 1939)

Title

Untitled (Cup)

Year

1981

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

glazed earthenware

Dimensions

12.4 x 11.8 x 11.2 cm (4 7/8 x 4 5/8 x 4 7/16 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Marken Scholes Shedd Memorial Fund

Object Number

81.062

Type

Exhibition History

On the Surface
Contemporary Ceramics
Apr 09, 2021 – May 05, 2024
Building Blocks
Contemporay Works from the Collection
May 06, 2011 – Mar 25, 2012

Label copy

Ron Nagle’s small-scale ceramic sculptures use complex, layered glazing techniques to create a range of surfaces-from smooth, liquid-like glosses to highly textured matte finishes. The process often involves firing each piece up to twenty times. Untitled, 1981, takes characteristic features of a cup (handle, lip, and foot, for

example) and alters them to the point of negating functionality. Waiting for Jumbot is from Nagle’s “weeorama” series, which evokes miniature tableaux or stage-sets. Its title refers to Samuel Beckett’s seminal play Waiting for Godot, imbuing the lone tiny red cube with a suggestive existential dimension. The title and matte gray glaze also evoke Jumbo, the famous 19th-century circus elephant, adding a note of humor.

Contemporary Decorative Arts from the Permanent Collection
Jul 07, 1995 – Oct 22, 1995
Contemporary Crafts
Ten Years of Collecting
Jan 19, 1990 – Mar 18, 1990

Image use

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In copyright This object is in copyright

Tombstone

Ron Nagle (American, b. 1939)
Untitled (Cup), 1981
Earthenware with paint and glaze
12.4 x 11.8 x 11.2 cm (4 7/8 x 4 5/8 x 4 7/16 inches)
Marken Scholes Shedd Memorial Fund 81.062

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