Basket, Table, Door, Window, Mirror, Rug #39 [recto] 1974

Richard Artschwager made this drawing with graphite on paper, conjuring a room with a door, window, table, mirror, and rug, all existing within the same pictorial space. I can imagine Artschwager working on this piece, his hand moving deliberately across the paper, carefully rendering each object with a precise, almost detached line. Maybe he was thinking about the relationship between these everyday objects, how they define and shape our perception of space. The lines are thin, controlled, creating a sense of flatness and depth simultaneously, kinda like how we experience things in real life. Each object is rendered with its own distinct texture, with slightly varied perspectives, which contributes to the uncanny quality of the drawing. This feels similar to the conceptual art of the time, but with a nod to older forms of visual trickery. It's about seeing and thinking, and about how those two things relate, or don’t relate. And isn't that what art, and life, is all about?