54 ED RUSCHA

Library, 1994
etching on handmade paper, 19 3/4" x 23 1/4", ed. 39 of 40

One of the most important American artists, Ruscha was recently selected to represent the U.S. at the 2005 Venice Biennale. Born in Omaha, Nebraska in 1937, he relocated to Los Angeles in 1956 and attended Chouinard Art Institute (now California Institute of the Arts). Immortalizing emblems of American life, such as the Hollywood sign and roadside gas stations, Ruscha incorporates what many consider a deadpan rhetoric into his work. “Ruscha is a recognized master who has inspired many of today’s young artists,” said Earl A. Powell III, director, National Gallery of Art, which hosted a retrospective of Ruscha’s work that traveled to the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles in 2004.

courtesy of the artist
value $2,800–3,300