William Wegman
Before/On/After: Permutations I

Before/On/After: Permutations I

© 1972 William Wegman

Before/On/After: Permutations I
Before/On/After: Permutations I
ArtistAmerican, born 1943
CultureAmerican
Titles
  • Before/On/After: Permutations I
Date1972, printed 1991
MediumGelatin silver prints
DimensionsImage (Each): 10 7/16 × 10 1/2 in. (26.5 × 26.7 cm)
Sheet (Each): 10 7/16 × 10 1/2 in. (26.5 × 26.7 cm)
Mount (Each): 10 7/16 × 10 1/2 in. (26.5 × 26.7 cm)
Frame (outer): 38 13/16 × 39 × 1 7/16 in. (98.6 × 99 × 3.7 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by the Caroline Wiess Law Accessions Endowment
Object number2019.182.A-.G
Not on view

Explore Further

Department
Photography
Object Type
DescriptionWilliam Wegman and his canine costar, Man Ray, brought humor to
Conceptual art, making the heady experimental form accessible and fun. With Man
Ray acting as the silent and visually flexible “straight man” (or “straight
dog”) in their photographic performances, Wegman could provide the comic
relief. Here, the duo confidently demonstrates the possi­bilities of a small
set of shapes with linked positions: circle means before; triangle means on;
and square means after. Permutations, a play on Variations (a
common title for painted Geometric Abstractions), reduces abstract art to the
level of a cute dog trick.

Provenance[Texas Gallery, Houston]; purchased by MFAH, 2019.

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.

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