LOVE (Indianapolis)
Encyclopedia
LOVE is an artwork by American
artist Robert Indiana
, located at the Indianapolis Museum of Art
(IMA), which is near downtown Indianapolis
, Indiana
. It was created in 1970 as the first sculptural form of Indiana's famous LOVE painting and has been on continuous exhibition at the Indianapolis Museum of Art since it was acquired in 1975.
sculpture consists of three separate elements fabricated from 3/8 inch-thick sheets of Cor-ten steel. They are bolted together to render the two-dimensional, text design in three-dimensional form. The hollow but enclosed block letters are 72 inches deep. The largest piece consists of the L stacked on top of the V, fashioned as one unit without a seam between the letters. The O and E are separate elements that attach to the LV. Two posts are installed on the top of the E for the alignment and stability of the O, which has corresponding openings on its lowest surface.
The right upper serif
of the E comes into contact with and forms a smooth continuation to the proper left upper serif of the V. The bottommost curve of the O contacts the E in line with the E’s inner vertical surface, and it contacts the L at the upper edge of the L’s lower left serif.
church services as a child in Indianapolis, he was impressed by a small plaque over the reader's platform bearing the inscription "God Is Love." Indiana is no longer a practicing member of the church, but he insists that the message of LOVE be taken as a spiritual one.
The sculpture is based on the artist's original 1965 Christmas card design for MoMA
, in which the majuscule letters of the word “love” are arranged in a 2×2 square, LO atop VE, and the O tilted to align with the diagonal of the square. MoMA's commission for the card came one year after Indiana had designed similar Christmas cards for close friends.
After pirated versions of the design began to appear in excess during the late 1960s, Indiana attempted to copyright his work, but this was rejected on the grounds that a single word cannot be protected. Some art critics believed his switch to the large-scale, three-dimensional version of the artwork was an effort by Indiana to reclaim his design in monumental fashion. Generally, however, the innovation of the letters standing as an independent form is seen as an aesthetic progression from his earlier sculptures which utilized typography painted upon flat surfaces.
, Italian
, and Spanish
.
before being loaned to New York City
, where it was exhibited in Central Park
for the 1971 holiday season.
Upon the artwork's return to Indianapolis in 1972, it was showcased for several months in front of Indiana National Bank and also appeared for a short time on the mall behind Eli Lilly & Co.'s administration building. The purpose of the latter instance was to use the sculpture as a backdrop for a TV commercial promoting the Lilly company; the ad intended to draw an analogy between the creativity of art and the creativity involved in research.
LOVE has undergone a few location adjustments as the IMA building and grounds have developed over the years. It now resides in the main sculpture courtyard of the IMA, surrounded by decorative landscaping and facing another Indiana sculpture, Numbers 0–9.
, which provides distinctive coloration and also protects the metal underneath from further corrosion. The price of being a cultural icon, however, has continuously disrupted the formation of this layer; viewers have enjoyed climbing the artwork since its first public appearances, apparent through photography and damage to the appearance of LOVE. Indiana acknowledged the inevitable appeal of his sculpture as a site of exploration for children, couples, and passerby. In a 1973 interview with Indianapolis magazine, he wished only "that people would take their shoes off first."
Various conservation efforts to reduce the amount of direct patron contact and its effects, as well as to deal with moisture within the hollow letters have taken place throughout the sculpture's lifespan. The Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture surveyed LOVE in July of 1993, and the sculpture was deemed to be well-maintained.
In 2006 the sculpture was blasted with an inert medium (aluminum oxide) to strip away uneven surface corrosion, and then it was re-installed outside on an indefinite basis to produce a new patina through natural weathering. The intention is to recreate the original “crispy,” purplish, and iridescent surface. The restorative efforts of the IMA on behalf of LOVE were made possible through the generosity of Patricia J. and James E. LaCrosse.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist Robert Indiana
Robert Indiana
Robert Indiana is an American artist associated with the Pop Art movement.-Life and work:Robert Indiana was born Robert Clark in New Castle, Indiana. His family relocated to Indianapolis, where he graduated from Arsenal Technical High School...
, located at the Indianapolis Museum of Art
Indianapolis Museum of Art
The Indianapolis Museum of Art is an encyclopedic art museum located in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The museum, which underwent a $74 million expansion in 2005, is located on a campus on the near northwest area outside downtown Indianapolis, northwest of Crown Hill Cemetery.The...
(IMA), which is near downtown Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Indiana
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
. It was created in 1970 as the first sculptural form of Indiana's famous LOVE painting and has been on continuous exhibition at the Indianapolis Museum of Art since it was acquired in 1975.
Description
This pop artPop art
Pop art is an art movement that emerged in the mid 1950s in Britain and in the late 1950s in the United States. Pop art challenged tradition by asserting that an artist's use of the mass-produced visual commodities of popular culture is contiguous with the perspective of fine art...
sculpture consists of three separate elements fabricated from 3/8 inch-thick sheets of Cor-ten steel. They are bolted together to render the two-dimensional, text design in three-dimensional form. The hollow but enclosed block letters are 72 inches deep. The largest piece consists of the L stacked on top of the V, fashioned as one unit without a seam between the letters. The O and E are separate elements that attach to the LV. Two posts are installed on the top of the E for the alignment and stability of the O, which has corresponding openings on its lowest surface.
The right upper serif
Serif
In typography, serifs are semi-structural details on the ends of some of the strokes that make up letters and symbols. A typeface with serifs is called a serif typeface . A typeface without serifs is called sans serif or sans-serif, from the French sans, meaning “without”...
of the E comes into contact with and forms a smooth continuation to the proper left upper serif of the V. The bottommost curve of the O contacts the E in line with the E’s inner vertical surface, and it contacts the L at the upper edge of the L’s lower left serif.
Historical information
Although the word "love" contained much significance to 1960s culture, Indiana attributes his connection with the word to an earlier, more personal source. Attending Christian ScienceChristian Science
Christian Science is a system of thought and practice derived from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and the Bible. It is practiced by members of The First Church of Christ, Scientist as well as some others who are nonmembers. Its central texts are the Bible and the Christian Science textbook,...
church services as a child in Indianapolis, he was impressed by a small plaque over the reader's platform bearing the inscription "God Is Love." Indiana is no longer a practicing member of the church, but he insists that the message of LOVE be taken as a spiritual one.
The sculpture is based on the artist's original 1965 Christmas card design for MoMA
Moma
Moma may refer to:* Moma , an owlet moth genus* Moma Airport, a Russian public airport* Moma District, Nampula, Mozambique* Moma River, a right tributary of the Indigirka River* Google Moma, the Google corporate intranet...
, in which the majuscule letters of the word “love” are arranged in a 2×2 square, LO atop VE, and the O tilted to align with the diagonal of the square. MoMA's commission for the card came one year after Indiana had designed similar Christmas cards for close friends.
After pirated versions of the design began to appear in excess during the late 1960s, Indiana attempted to copyright his work, but this was rejected on the grounds that a single word cannot be protected. Some art critics believed his switch to the large-scale, three-dimensional version of the artwork was an effort by Indiana to reclaim his design in monumental fashion. Generally, however, the innovation of the letters standing as an independent form is seen as an aesthetic progression from his earlier sculptures which utilized typography painted upon flat surfaces.
Other versions
The IMA’s LOVE is the original sculptural rendition of the design. Many other versions have been made and are displayed worldwide, including editions in Hebrew, ChineseChinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, and Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
.
Location history
LOVE was originally installed on the main plaza at the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 1970 for the opening of the museum's current building. It then spent nearly a year displayed on the city hall plaza in BostonBoston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
before being loaned to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where it was exhibited in Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
for the 1971 holiday season.
Upon the artwork's return to Indianapolis in 1972, it was showcased for several months in front of Indiana National Bank and also appeared for a short time on the mall behind Eli Lilly & Co.'s administration building. The purpose of the latter instance was to use the sculpture as a backdrop for a TV commercial promoting the Lilly company; the ad intended to draw an analogy between the creativity of art and the creativity involved in research.
LOVE has undergone a few location adjustments as the IMA building and grounds have developed over the years. It now resides in the main sculpture courtyard of the IMA, surrounded by decorative landscaping and facing another Indiana sculpture, Numbers 0–9.
Acquisition
The sculpture was officially accessioned into the IMA's collection in 1975 through a "Gift of the Friends of the Indianapolis Museum of Art in memory of Henry F. DeBoest."Artist
Robert Indiana (born Robert Clark, September 13, 1928) is an American artist associated with the Pop Art movement.Condition
As an outdoor sculpture made of a weathering iron alloy, the surface of LOVE should naturally carry an even layer of iron(III) oxideIron(III) oxide
Iron oxide or ferric oxide is the inorganic compound with the formula Fe2O3. It is one of the three main oxides of iron, the other two being iron oxide , which is rare, and iron oxide , which also occurs naturally as the mineral magnetite. As the mineral known as hematite, Fe2O3 is the main...
, which provides distinctive coloration and also protects the metal underneath from further corrosion. The price of being a cultural icon, however, has continuously disrupted the formation of this layer; viewers have enjoyed climbing the artwork since its first public appearances, apparent through photography and damage to the appearance of LOVE. Indiana acknowledged the inevitable appeal of his sculpture as a site of exploration for children, couples, and passerby. In a 1973 interview with Indianapolis magazine, he wished only "that people would take their shoes off first."
Various conservation efforts to reduce the amount of direct patron contact and its effects, as well as to deal with moisture within the hollow letters have taken place throughout the sculpture's lifespan. The Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture surveyed LOVE in July of 1993, and the sculpture was deemed to be well-maintained.
In 2006 the sculpture was blasted with an inert medium (aluminum oxide) to strip away uneven surface corrosion, and then it was re-installed outside on an indefinite basis to produce a new patina through natural weathering. The intention is to recreate the original “crispy,” purplish, and iridescent surface. The restorative efforts of the IMA on behalf of LOVE were made possible through the generosity of Patricia J. and James E. LaCrosse.