
Purpose
2019
Samuel Levi Jones's *Purpose* (2019) continues the artist's ongoing investigation into systems of power and knowledge through the deconstruction of institutional materials. Jones is known for unraveling and repurposing the bindings of encyclopedias, law books, and other authoritative texts, exposing their raw components to challenge the authority embedded within them. The resulting work transforms these symbols of established power into abstract compositions that provoke questions about equity, access, and the structures that shape human understanding.
- Dimensions
- Signed
- Yes
- Spotted At
- Auction House · Phillips
Notes
Execution: Executed in 2019, in the United States. Literature: Leah Ollman, “One artist’s solution to the racial inequities embedded in books: Rip them apart,” ; Exhibition History: Los Angeles, Vielmetter, ;
🔨 Auction Lot
Modern & Contemporary Art: Online Auction
February 24, 2026
Estimate: $7,000 – $10,000
Sold: $10,965
Lot 14
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