Antoni Tapies The Resources of Rhetoric May 16-0ctober 19, 2009
Dia:Beacon Riggio Galleries 3 Beekman Street Beacon New York 12508 845 440 0100 www.diaart.org
An
ton
i T
apie
s: T
he
Res
ou
rces
of
Rh
eto
ric
The
wor
k of
Ant
oni
Ta.
pies
doe
s no
t fa
ll ne
atly
with
in t
he p
aram
eter
s of
tra
ditio
nal
art
hist
ory;
for
, cu
stom
arily
, it
has
been
lod
ged
betw
een
two
wor
lds,
that
of
the
mod
ern,
whi
ch w
as c
omin
g to
a c
lose
whe
n th
e C
atal
an a
rtis
t be
gan
his
care
er i
n th
e ea
rly
1950
s, a
nd t
hat
of t
he p
ostm
oder
n, w
hich
had
yet
to
man
ifest
its
elf.
Tap
ies'
s pa
intin
g
is p
erha
ps t
oo o
bjec
t-ba
sed
for
criti
cs w
ho s
ough
t an
ess
entia
l G
reen
berg
ian
purit
y
and
too
gest
ural
, ex
pres
sion
ist,
and
cons
trai
ned
by th
e re
stric
tions
of
the
fram
e fo
r
thos
e w
ho f
ocus
ed o
n th
e ae
sthe
tic o
f th
e ex
pand
ed f
ield
, as
def
ined
by
Ros
alin
d
Kra
uss.
How
ever
, the
viv
acio
us w
elco
me
his
oeuv
re e
njoy
ed f
rom
crit
ics
such
as
Mic
hel
Tap
ie, G
iulio
Car
lo A
rgan
, an
d th
e S
pani
sh w
riter
Jua
n E
duar
do C
irlot
mig
ht
toda
y se
em e
xces
sive
ly p
erso
nal a
nd m
ystic
al, r
emna
nts
of a
hum
anis
t pa
st t
hat
are
now
dis
tant
, re
mot
e.
Hei
r to
Spa
in's
bril
liant
ear
ly a
vant
-gar
de,
who
se m
ost
cele
brat
ed m
embe
rs i
nclu
ded
Pab
lo P
icas
so, J
oan
Miro
, and
Sal
vado
r D
air,
Ta.
pies
is u
nque
stio
nabl
y th
e le
ad-
ing
figur
e in
the
coun
try'
s ar
t w
orld
of
the
seco
nd h
alf
of t
he t
wen
tieth
cen
tury
and
has
rem
aine
d an
inf
luen
tial
pres
ence
in
Spa
in f
or o
ver
sixt
y ye
ars.
In
addi
tion
to h
is
wor
k as
an
artis
t, hi
s nu
mer
ous
activ
ities
and
ini
tiativ
es (
for
exam
ple,
he
foun
ded
one
of B
arce
lona
's m
ost
activ
e ar
t ce
nter
s) k
eep
his
nam
e in
the
spot
light
, pu
blic
accl
aim
tha
t ha
s of
ten
mas
ked
his
art.
As
a re
sult,
the
disc
ours
e ar
ound
his
wor
k
has
been
red
uced
to
clic
he.
Mor
e in
tere
sted
in
resp
ondi
ng t
o la
rger
and
mor
e ge
n
eral
iss
ues
than
to
thos
e re
latin
g sp
ecifi
cally
to
his
own
wor
k, h
e ha
s be
en r
elat
ivel
y
sile
nt w
ith r
egar
d to
his
pai
ntin
g an
d, w
ith t
he e
xcep
tions
of
his
theo
retic
al t
exts
"Com
mun
icat
ion
on t
he W
all,"
"N
othi
ng I
s M
ean,
" an
d "A
rt a
gain
st A
esth
etic
s,"
he
has
not
offe
red
suffi
cien
t ke
ys to
an
unde
rsta
ndin
g of
his
pra
ctic
e.
Wha
t is
uni
que
abou
t th
e w
ork
of T
a.pi
es?
Why
doe
s it
still
con
tinue
to
attr
act
us?
Firs
t, pe
rhap
s, b
ecau
se h
is p
aint
ings
do
not
conf
orm
to
any
cano
n. T
o de
scrib
e th
em
as A
bstr
act
Exp
ress
ioni
st o
r ln
form
alis
t is
im
prec
ise.
It
repr
esen
ts a
n at
tem
pt t
o vi
ew
the
wor
k th
roug
h co
ncep
ts t
hat
the
artis
t ha
d re
ject
ed b
y th
e tim
e he
had
pro
duce
d
his
mat
ure
wor
k (t
he s
o-ca
lled
mat
ter
pain
tings
). W
hile
it
is tr
ue t
hat
his
ackn
owl
edge
d re
fere
nces
orig
inat
e in
Miro
and
Pic
asso
and
tha
t hi
s el
ectiv
e af
finiti
es a
re
foun
d in
Fra
nz K
line
and
Rob
ert
Mot
herw
ell,
Ta.
pies
bel
ongs
by
age
and
attit
ude
to a
gene
ratio
n in
whi
ch t
he m
ark
of t
he e
phem
eral
and
the
use
of
writ
ing
is fu
ndam
enta
l.
Alth
ough
he
exp
ound
s op
inio
ns t
hat
cont
radi
ct t
he v
iew
s ex
pres
sed
here
, a p
ositi
on
that
und
oubt
edly
res
ults
fro
m p
artic
ular
his
toric
al c
onte
xts,
suc
h as
that
of
Spa
in
unde
r F
ranc
o, h
is w
ork
enga
ges
the
frin
ges
of t
he m
oder
nist
leg
acy.
Whi
le m
oder
nist
pain
ting
was
fun
dam
enta
lly n
onna
rrat
ive,
ant
irhet
oric
al,
flat,
and
pain
terly
, Tap
ies'
s
art
is b
ased
in
narr
ativ
e an
d de
light
s in
rhe
toric
al d
evic
es; i
t do
es n
ot r
espe
ct th
e
flatn
ess
of t
he c
anva
s bu
t in
stea
d fo
lds
back
ont
o its
elf.
Ta.
pies
exp
lore
s th
e m
ater
ial
ist
basi
s of
pai
ntin
g in
an
exce
ptio
nal
man
ner.
His
wor
k re
flect
s bo
th t
he m
ater
ial
of
the
form
and
the
for
m o
f th
e m
ater
ial,
with
out
annu
lling
the
ir di
ffere
nces
as
ort
hodo
x
mod
erni
sm w
ould
. Tap
ies'
s w
orks
mai
ntai
n a
stru
ctur
al a
mbi
guity
tha
t co
mpl
icat
es
thei
r as
sim
ilatio
n in
to s
yste
ms
that
gra
vita
te t
owar
d no
rmal
izat
ion
and
com
mod
ifica
tion.
Spl
it be
twee
n ob
ject
, pa
intin
g, a
nd w
ritin
g, h
is w
orks
hav
e sc
ulpt
ural
and
tac
tile
qual
ities
tha
t, w
hile
cle
arly
eng
agin
g w
ith t
he p
rece
pts
of p
aint
ing,
avo
id a
ny fo
rm o
f.
idea
lism
. As
a re
sult,
des
pite
the
evi
denc
e of
a c
erta
in i
nclin
atio
n to
war
d ae
sthe
ticis
m,
Tap
ies'
s pa
intin
gs n
ever
fal
l in
to m
ere
deco
ratio
n no
r co
uld
they
be
desc
ribed
as
fetis
hist
ic.
To
the
cont
rary
, hi
s vi
rtuo
sity
is
inst
illed
in
the
form
of
rhet
oric
-in
a
mat
eria
l fo
rm o
f w
ritin
g th
at c
ance
ls o
ut t
he d
ecor
ativ
e.
Whe
n T
a.pi
es is
pai
ntin
g, h
e is
act
ually
writ
ing.
As
a su
cces
sor
of M
alla
rme,
he
rein
terp
rets
"A
Thr
ow o
f th
e D
ice"
thr
ough
Ant
onin
Art
aud'
s no
tion
of a
byss
al e
xper
i
ence
. The
pas
sivi
ty o
f th
e no
un i
s th
us r
epla
ced
by th
e tr
ansi
tive
natu
re o
f th
e ve
rb:
Ta.
pies
is n
ot a
pai
nter
, ra
ther
he
pain
ts;
and
by d
oing
so
he o
pens
up
fissu
res
in o
ur
perc
eptio
n of
a s
eam
less
wor
ld.
His
can
vas
is th
e sh
eet
of p
aper
, the
ski
n th
roug
h
whi
ch w
e, th
e vi
ewer
s, m
ight
exp
erie
nce
the
wor
ld a
nd t
ease
out
our
rel
atio
nshi
ps t
o
it. T
hus
the
actio
n of
writ
ing
cons
titut
es t
he l
imitl
ess
inef
fabl
e el
emen
t fo
und
in th
is
hete
rodo
x tr
aditi
on o
f m
oder
nism
. In
con
tras
t to
wor
ks d
efin
ed b
y S
ocia
list
Rea
lism
,
a po
pula
r na
rrat
ive
form
of
the
1940
s an
d 19
50s,
Tap
ies'
s pa
intin
g ca
n ne
ver
be
desc
ribed
as
illus
trat
ive.
Ins
tead
, hi
s pa
intin
g is
pol
itica
l in
its
poe
tics.
As
Jacq
ues
Ran
cier
e al
lege
s, w
orks
of
art
are
annu
ncia
tions
tha
t tr
ansf
orm
our
per
cept
ion
of
the
wor
ld.
The
mor
e ar
tistic
the
y ar
e th
e m
ore
polit
ical
the
y ar
e.
For
Ta.
pies
, art
is
intr
insi
cally
lin
ked
to m
agic
-mag
ic
mor
e ak
in t
o th
e ill
usio
ns c
on
jure
d by
a fa
irgro
und
mag
icia
n, h
owev
er, t
han
the
sham
anic
rite
s in
voke
d by
Jos
eph
Beu
ys.
Non
ethe
less
, T
a.pi
es is
aw
are
of t
he c
ynic
ism
of
an e
ra i
n w
hich
cla
ssifi
ca
tion
devo
urs
all a
nd i
n w
hich
cre
ativ
e w
ork
is lo
cate
d at
the
cen
ter
of o
ur e
cono
mic
syst
em.
In h
is p
ract
ice,
the
re i
s no
roo
m f
or t
he R
oman
tic i
dea
of t
he a
rtis
t as
dem
i
urge
, as
the
poss
esso
r of
uni
vers
al a
nd t
rans
cend
ent
trut
hs.
The
art
ist's
atte
mpt
to
brin
g ab
out
polit
ical
cha
nge
has
been
def
eate
d tim
e an
d ag
ain
in t
he m
oder
nist
era
.
Ta.
pies
kno
ws
that
art
is
tric
kery
, an
d w
hat
is im
port
ant
is n
ot t
he f
inal
res
ult
but
the
gam
e its
elf,
the
emot
iona
l re
latio
nshi
p es
tabl
ishe
d be
twee
n ar
tist
and
view
er t
hrou
gh
the
obje
ct.
Her
ein
lies
the
mys
tery
of
the
artis
tic a
ct;
and
that
unm
entio
nabl
e se
cret
allo
ws
us to
exi
st o
r co
exis
t w
ith n
o fu
nctio
nal
requ
irem
ents
or
impo
sed
iden
titie
s.
Man
uel
Bo
rja-
Vill
el,
Dir
ecto
r, M
use
o N
acio
nal
Cen
tro
de
Art
e R
ein
a S
ofi
a, M
adri
d
site
map
ch
eckl
ist
of
wo
rks
I A
nto
ni
Tap
ies:
Th
e R
eso
urc
es o
f R
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a (L
arg
e B
row
n a
nd
Wo
od
), 1
975
Mix
ed m
edia
on
woo
d 10
51/a
x 7
83/4
inch
es (
267
x 20
0 cm
) M
useo
Nac
iona
l Cen
tro
de A
rte
Rei
na S
ofia
, M
adrid
16
Gra
n l
lit-p
ort
a (L
arg
e B
ed-D
oo
r),
1972
M
ixed
med
ia o
n w
ood
1085
/15
x 12
97/a
inch
es (
275
x 33
0 cm
) F
unda
ci6n
Tel
efon
ica;
long
-ter
m lo
an to
Mus
eo N
acio
nal
Cen
tro
de A
rte
Rei
na S
ofia
, M
adrid
17
Dip
tic
de
vern
is (
Var
nis
h D
ipty
ch),
198
4 M
ixed
med
ia o
n ca
nvas
86
5/a
x 21
33/a
inch
es (
220
x 54
2 cm
) F
unda
ci6
Ant
oni T
a.pi
es, B
arce
lona
The
200
4 do
cum
enta
ry
A. T
Alfa
bet
Tap
ies,
dire
cted
by
Dan
iel
Her
nand
ez,
wil
l
be s
how
n in
the
scr
eeni
ng
room
dur
ing
the
cour
se
of t
he e
xhib
ition
. P
leas
e se
e
ww
w.d
iaar
t.org
or
inq
uire
at
the
adm
issi
ons
desk
for
a s
ched
ule.
Thi
s ex
hibi
tion,
"Ant
oni T
a.pi
es: T
he R
esou
rces
of
Rhe
toric
," cu
rate
d by
Man
uel B
orja
-Vill
el, i
s th
e
first
in
a se
ries
of i
nstit
utio
nal e
xhan
ges
plan
ned
betw
een
Dia
Art
Fou
ndat
ion,
New
Yor
k, a
nd
the
Mus
eo N
acio
nal C
entr
o de
Art
e R
eina
Sof
fa, M
adrid
.
Thi
s ex
hibi
tion
is m
ade
poss
ible
in p
art t
hrou
gh t
he g
ener
osity
of
the
Sta
te C
orpo
ratio
n fo
r
Spa
nish
Cul
tura
l Act
ion
Abr
oad
(SE
AC
EX
) and
the
Spa
nish
Min
istr
ies
of F
orei
gn A
ffairs
and
Coo
pera
tion
and
Cul
ture
, and
Pac
eWild
enst
ein.
Cov
er:
Gra
n m
arr6
i f
usta
(La
rge
Bro
wn
and
Woo
d),
1975
An
ton
i T
apie
s w
as b
orn
in B
arce
lona
, S
pain
, in
192
3,
into
a f
amily
of
boo
ksel
lers
and
Cat
alan
na
tiona
list
polit
icia
ns.
Dur
ing
prot
ract
ed
perio
ds
of i
llnes
s in
his
adol
esce
nce,
he
beg
an
draw
ing
and
deve
lopi
ng
a se
rious
in
tere
st
in l
itera
ture
. In
1944
, af
ter
aban
doni
ng
law
stu
dies
at
Bar
celo
na
Uni
vers
ity,
he b
egan
to
wor
k as
an a
rtis
t. T
a.pi
es f
irst
exhi
bite
d hi
s w
ork
in t
he
late
19
40s
and
had
his
first
so
lo
exhi
bitio
n in
195
0 at
Gal
erie
s L
aiet
anes
, B
arce
lona
, an
d hi
s fir
st
New
Yor
k so
lo
exhi
bitio
n in
195
3 at
Mar
tha
Jack
son
Gal
lery
. H
e fir
st
trav
eled
ab
road
to
Par
is i
n
1951
, w
here
he
met
Pab
lo
Pic
asso
, an
d in
195
3 he
vis
ited
New
Y
ork,
whe
re
he m
et
Will
em
de K
ooni
ng,
Fra
nz K
line,
Rob
ert
Mot
herw
ell,
and
Han
s H
ofm
ann.
In
1984
, he
esta
blis
hed
the
Ant
oni
Ta.
pies
Fou
ndat
ion
in B
arce
lona
. R
etro
spec
tive
surv
eys
of h
is
wor
k ha
ve b
een
pres
ente
d at
suc
h ve
nues
as
the
K
estn
er-G
esel
lsch
aft,
Han
nove
r,
Ger
man
y (1
962)
, th
e S
olom
on
R. G
ugge
nhei
m
Mus
eum
, N
ew Y
ork
(196
2),
and
the
Kun
stha
us
Zur
ich
(196
2),
the
Mus
eum
de
s 20
. Ja
hrhu
nder
ts,
Vie
nna
(196
8),
Mus
ee
d'A
rt
Mod
erne
de
la
Vill
e de
Par
is (
1973
),
Alb
right
-Kno
x A
rt
Gal
lery
, B
uffa
lo
(197
7),
Ste
delij
k M
useu
m,
Am
ster
dam
(1
980)
, K
unst
sam
mlu
ng
Nor
drhe
in-W
estfa
len,
Dus
seld
orf
(198
9),
and
Mus
eo
Nac
iona
l C
entr
o de
Art
e R
eina
Sof
ia,
Mad
rid
(200
0).
In 1
993,
T
a.pi
es a
nd C
ristin
a Ig
lesi
as
repr
esen
ted
Spa
in a
t th
e 45
th
Ven
ice
Bie
nnal
e.
Ta.
pies
liv
es a
nd w
orks
in
Bar
celo
na.
Bib
liog
rap
hy,
ar
rang
ed c
hron
olog
ical
ly
Ciri
ci, A
lexa
ndre
. Tap
ies:
Witn
ess
of S
ilenc
e. B
arce
lona
: Edi
cion
s P
olfg
rafa
SA
, 19
72.
Pen
rose
, Rol
and.
Tap
ies.
New
Yor
k: R
izzo
li, 1
978.
Fra
nzke
, And
reas
. Tap
ies.
Mun
ich:
Pre
stel
Ver
lag,
199
2.
Bor
ja-V
illel
, Man
uel J
., "B
y W
ay o
f In
trod
uctio
n: A
Con
vers
atio
n w
ith A
nton
i Ta.
pies
." In
Ant
oni
Tap
ies:
New
Pai
ntin
gs.
New
Yor
k: P
ace
Wild
enst
ein,
199
5, p
p. 7
-13.
Tap
ies:
El
tatu
atge
i c
os:
Pap
ers,
car
tons
, i
colla
ges.
Bar
celo
na: F
unda
ci6
Ant
oni T
a.pi
es, 1
998.
Tex
ts b
y X
avie
r Ant
ich,
Man
uel J
. B
orja
-Vill
el, a
nd P
eter
Bur
ger.
Tap
ies.
Mad
rid: M
useo
Nac
iona
l Cen
tro
de A
rte
Rei
na S
offa
, 200
0.
Tex
ts b
y M
anue
l J.
Bor
ja-V
illel
, Ale
xand
er G
. Dut
tman
, Ant
oni T
a.pi
es, a
nd J
ohn
C. W
elch
man
.
Tap
ies.
In P
ersp
ectiv
e. B
arce
lona
: AC
TA
R, i
n co
llabo
ratio
n w
ith M
useu
d'A
rt C
onte
mpo
rani
de
Bar
celo
na, 2
004.
Tex
ts b
y V
aler
iano
Boz
al, S
erge
Gui
lbau
t, A
nton
i Ta.
pies
, and
Joh
n Y
au, w
ith
an in
trod
uctio
n by
Man
uel J
. Bor
ja-V
illel
.