Old/New New/Old 

This is Allen Ruppersberg’s collage, Old/New New/Old, constructed from found materials and images. The pegboard is a common organizational tool, a system of display and storage that evokes both the domestic sphere and the commercial landscape of the hardware store. Ruppersberg’s appropriation of mass-produced materials – printed paper, photographs, and the pegboard itself – speaks to a wider social context of consumption. The images he has chosen, all relating to the Kennedy assassinations, point to a collective trauma, filtered through the lens of media. Each image and text snippet carries its own weight, contributing to a dense, layered narrative. Ruppersberg is asking us to consider how these widely distributed images shape our memory, and to think about the labor that goes into producing and circulating them. By bringing together these disparate elements, Ruppersberg blurs the boundaries between art and everyday life, challenging the idea of artistic genius and highlighting the cultural significance of the commonplace.