ARTIST ROOMS: Lawrence Weiner
Lawrence Weiner’s use of language as his primary medium has marked him out as one of the leading figures of conceptual art.
This display of work by Lawrence Weiner forms part of a collection of international contemporary art jointly owned
by Tate and National Galleries of Scotland. It is known as
ARTIST ROOMS and focuses on individual rooms devoted
to particular artists.
Weiner’s work focuses on the interaction between the artwork and the ‘receiver’ – his term for the audience who encounters the work in some form and chooses to engage with it through thoughts or actions.
Weiner defines his medium as ‘language + the material referred to’, emphasising the flexibility of their presentation: these works have no particular physical form in themselves and only exist as language, with the potential to be displayed or otherwise transmitted. So far, Weiner’s statements have taken the form of text inscribed in gallery or public spaces, books and posters, cast or carved objects, spoken dialogue in audio and video works, song lyrics and even tattoos.
Installed on levels 2, 3 and 4, this cycle of works from 1988 consists of ten statements, each suggesting a physical action or invoking the manipulation of an object or material. In fact, Weiner regards his statements as sculpture rather than poetry, explaining that ‘they show the relationship of object to object and that is the idea and purpose of a sculpture’.
Lawrence Weiner was born in 1942 in New York City, where he lives and works.
ARTIST ROOMS was established through The d’Offay Donation in 2008, with the assistance of the National Heritage Memorial Fund, The Art Fund and the Scottish and British Governments, and is being shared with museums and galleries throughout the UK with additional generous support from The Art Fund and the Scottish Government.
Curated by Matthew Gale and Valentina Ravaglia
