Untitled (America) // Felix Gonzalez-Torres // 1994 // twelve light strings, each with forty-two 15-watt lightbulbs and rubber sockets
Cascading down the staircase at The Whitney are strands of glowing lightbulbs. The utilization of lightbulbs is a signature medium for artist Felix Gonzalez-Torres. After his partner Ross Laycock died of AIDS in 1991, Gonzalez-Torres created this work, and many others, as a metaphor for life. As the lightbulbs burn, they will eventually die. But not all at once. One might burn out, then months later another. Just as you notice the lightbulbs burning out, you might notice people in your life passing away. The lightbulbs symbolize life and eventual death.
Untitled (America) // Felix Gonzalez-Torres // 1994 // twelve light strings, each with forty-two 15-watt lightbulbs and rubber sockets
