Composition with Fruits, 1992
bronze
180 x 30 x 31 cm
(c) VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn
Jiři Georg Dokoupil (*1954 Knrov, CZ) is one of those young contemporary artists whose work is difficult to pin down and assign
to a particular art movement or direction. His art is too varied and his media too mixed to make this possible: he is just
as likely to work in bronze as he is to use objets trouvés and foodstuffs – from car tyres to breast milk – or apply paint
to a canvas with a whip. In Composition with Fruits Dokoupil engages with the history of bronze sculpture. His tower of bronze
bananas stacked one on top of the other calls to mind the Endless Column of the Romanian artist Constantin Brâncuşi. The banana
has been a popular symbol in art ever since Andy Warhol, and is still widely used today – for example in the work of Tilman
Baumgärtel, who networks entire cities with bananas sprayed on the walls of houses and footpaths. Dokoupil's Composition with
Fruits is also a tongue-in-cheek reference to the history of art and the connection between high and popular culture.
Composition with Fruits, 1992
bronze
180 x 30 x 31 cm,
Background: Bernard Piffaretti, Untitled, 2005,
Acrylic on canvas, 162 x 97 cm,
and: Karel Malich, Spatril jsem ruce (I have seen hands) and Hlava (Head), 1988,
Acrylic on canvas, each 100 x 72 cm
installation view
(c) VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn/ Karel Malich
Composition with Fruits, 1992
bronze
180 x 30 x 31 cm,
Background: Karel Malich, Spatril jsem hlavu (I Have Seen a Head), 1988,
Acrylic on canvas, 100 x 72 cm
installation view
(c) VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn/ Karel Malich
