About this artwork
Lucas Samaras, a versatile artist with roots in Pop Art and Surrealism, has turned the camera on himself since the late 1960s, with the Polaroid, or instant color photograph, his preferred medium. His self-titled AutoPolaroids elevate and reclaim a popular technology and express an obsession with the self—not unlike that unleashed by the advent of camera phones. Samaras enhances his photographs with filters, scratches, manipulation of chemicals, and, as in this example, ink dots to create what he calls “visual excitement.” His work often exposes the artifice of a studio setup, as in this photograph, where he allows viewers a glimpse of the various tools he utilizes to achieve his optical and material alterations.
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Photography and Media
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Artist
- Lucas Samaras
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Title
- Still Life
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Place
- United States (Artist's nationality:)
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Date
- 1978
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Medium
- Internal dye diffusion transfer print
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Inscriptions
- Unmarked recto; inscribed verso, lower left, in graphite: "7/7/78 / 6"; stamped verso, lower left, in blue ink: "C82338D35323A"
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Dimensions
- Image: 24 × 19 cm (9 1/2 × 7 1/2 in.); Paper: 27.5 × 21.4 cm (10 7/8 × 8 7/16 in.)
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Credit Line
- Gift of Robert and Gayle Greenhill
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Reference Number
- 1991.988
Extended information about this artwork
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.
