Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is a glass drawing by Alighiero Boetti. It dates from 1966 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1966, this work by Italian conceptual artist Alighiero Boetti assembles a series of ten small squares adhered to a printed sheet. Each square presents a distinct material—fabric, plexiglass, cork, metal, wire, aluminum, wood, and synthetic tubing—arranged in a modest, grid-like composition that foregrounds the juxtaposition of everyday objects.
Technique & Style
Boetti employs a heterogeneous mix of industrial and domestic substances: fabric, plexiglass, cork cut into letters, metal rings, wire mesh, aluminum, plywood, electric wire, and ballpoint pen marks on paper. The elements are glued directly onto the substrate, allowing their varied textures—rough cork, smooth plastic, shiny metal—to remain visible, emphasizing the tactile contrast inherent in the assemblage.
Subject & Meaning
The cork letters, rendered in a loose, handwritten style, spell a name, introducing a personal or linguistic reference amid the otherwise non‑representational objects. By pairing disparate materials and a fragment of text, Boetti probes notions of duality, classification, and the boundary between art and ordinary life, a concern central to his conceptual practice.
History & Provenance
The piece originates from Boetti’s early period within the Arte Povera movement, when he explored low‑cost, readily available materials as a counterpoint to traditional artistic media. Since its creation, the work has been held in private collections before entering public exhibition, illustrating the artist’s sustained interest in material experimentation during the 1960s.
Artist & collection
Artist
Alighiero Fabrizio Boetti, known as Alighiero e Boetti (16 December 1940 – 24 April 1994) was an Italian painter, sculptor and conceptual artist, considered to be a member of the art movement Arte Povera.
