the art collectors » Sol LeWitt’s 25 Year Installation @ Mass. MoCA

Tuesday, December 16th, 2008

Sol LeWitt’s 25 Year Installation @ Mass. MoCA

Image: John Mcalister/Mass MoCA

Sol Lewitt’s final conceptual undertaking before his death last April is now on view at Mass MoCA. Spanning the artist’s career from 1969-2007, Sol LeWitt: A Wall Drawing Retropspective, compiles 105 large-scale wall drawings, housed in a newly restored three-story mill on the Massachussetts MoCA grounds. Here, it becomes abundantly clear why LeWitt is regarded as one of the most significant conceptual and minimalist artists of the twentieth century. Staying true to his form, none of these hugely influential wall drawings were created by LeWitt himself. Rather, the artist conceptualized a series of simple step-by-step instructions which could be executed by virtually any marginally trained artist – anywhere at any time.

It is almost poetic that LeWitt did not live to see this massive undertaking come to light. The very fact that these works were created after his passing and will remain on view for the next 25 years, serve as the ultimate testament to an artist whose mission was to span time, space and tangible forms. In his own words, “In conceptual art the idea or concept is the most important aspect of the work. When an artist uses a conceptual form of art, it means that all of the planning and decisions are made beforehand and the execution is a perfunctory affair. The idea becomes a machine that makes the art” (“Paragraphs on Conceptual Art”, Artforum, June 1967). Arguably, in death LeWitt’s artistic vision has truly been realized, perhaps more so than it ever could have been during the course of his wildly accomplished lifetime.

Can’t make it within the next 25 years? – Read on for a selection of our favorites, or visit the museum’s online gallery, including time-lapsed photography of the creation of several pieces.

Image: John Mcalister/Mass MoCA