Robert Rauschenberg
Sor Aqua (Venetian)

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Artist Robert Rauschenberg (American, 1925–2008)American, 1925–2008

CultureAmerican

Titles

Sor Aqua (Venetian)

Date1973

Made inUnited States

MediumWood, metal, rope, glass jug, and water-filled bathtub

DimensionsOverall: 118 × 118 × 41 in. (299.7 × 299.7 × 104.1 cm)

Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by the Caroline Wiess Law Foundation

Object number2002.4.A,.B

Not on view

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Department

Modern and Contemporary Art

Object Type

SCULPTURE

DescriptionIn 1964 Robert Rauschenberg became the
first American to win the Venice Biennale’s
grand prize. A decade later, Sor Aqua (Venetian)
paid homage to the floating city. The simple
construct of the water-filled tub and the
suspended cloud evokes Venice’s fabled canals
and its mercurial skies, as well as its decaying
architecture. At the same time, the familiarity
of these objects provokes more immediate
associations. Rauschenberg commented, “I
have a passion for the history of what I see. . . .
I’m not interested in the startling event, but
I’m interested that when I use objects they
regain your attention.”
Provenance[Ace Gallery, Los Angeles]; Private collection, California; sold through [Anthony d'Offay Gallery, London]; purchased by MFAH, 2002.

Exhibition History“Robert Rauschenberg: Venetian Series, Cardboard Constructions and Sculpture,” Leo Castelli Gallery, New York, March 31–April 21, 1973.

“Robert Rauschenberg,” National Collection of Fine Arts, Washington D.C., October 30, 1976–January 2, 1977; Museum of Modern Art, New York, March 25–May17, 1977; Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, June 24–August 21, 1977; Albright Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, September 25–October 30, 1977; Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, December 3, 1977–January 15, 1978.

"Rauschenberg," Tate Gallery, London, April 29–June 14, 1981.

“El Soñado Mundo de Rauschenberg,” Museo Rufino Tamayo Arte Contemporáneo Internacional, Mexico, April 17–June 23, 1985.

“Rauschenberg Sculpture,” Modern Art Museum, Fort Worth, October 22,1995–December 31, 1995; Traveled to Museum of Contemporary Art, Miami, April 25–June 9, 1996.

"Robert Rauschenberg: A Retrospective," Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Guggenheim Museum SoHo, and Guggenheim Museum at Ace Gallery, New York, September 19, 1997–January 7, 1998; The Menil Collection, Contemporary Arts Museum and The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, February 13–May 17, 1998; Museum Ludwig, Cologne, June 27–October 11, 1998; Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, November 20– February 26, 1999.

"Art at Midcentury: Spotlight on the Collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, April 13–September 3, 2001.

"The Passionate Adventure of the Real: Collage, Assemblage, and the Object in 20th Century Art," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, October 18, 2003–February 8, 2004.

“Acquisitions of the Last Five Years: Selections of Modern and Contemporary Art,” Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, July 15–October 15, 2005.

"Robert Rauschenberg, Travelling: 1970-1976," Museu Serralves, Museu de Arte Contemporanea, Porto, Portugal, October 26, 2007–March 30, 2008; Haus der Kunst, Munich, May 9–September 7, 2008; Museo d'Arte Contemporanea DonnaRegina, Naples, October 18, 2008–January 19, 2009.

"Selections from the Museum's Collection: Post-War Painting and Sculpture," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, May 5–September 5, 2016.

"Robert Rauschenberg: Among Friends," Museum of Modern Art, New York, May 16–September 17, 2017; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, November 18, 2017–March 25, 2018.

Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Impressed on the front rim of tub: "Standard" and stamped on the underside of the tub: "MADE IN / UNITED STATES OF AMERICA..."

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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