David Hammons’s art is complex to categorise: using resources that differ from the norm, he has experimented with materials such as wine, elephant dung, chicken bones and Kool-aid. The use of ‘low-grade’ materials can be understood in reference to Arte Povera, an acknowledged source for his inspiration, but also aim to explore the relationship between materials, images and their meaning.
This work by David Hammons employs Kool-Aid powdered drink on paper, a characteristically unconventional material choice that carries deep cultural resonance as a staple of African American households and communities. The vibrant pigment of the drink mix is transformed into an artistic medium, challenging traditional notions of what constitutes acceptable art-making materials. Framed by a silk curtain of the artist's own design, the work blurs the boundaries between the domestic and the artistic, inviting viewers to reconsider the relationship between everyday objects and their broader social and cultural significance.
- Medium
- Kool-Aid powdered drink on paper with silk curtain, in artist's frame
- Spotted At
- Auction House · Phillips
🔨 Auction Lot
Contemporary Art Evening Sale
October 15, 2014
More by David Hammons
Money Tree (P. 31)
Hair Relaxer
2007
“When I lie down on the paper which is first placed on the floor, I have to carefully decide how to get up after I have made the impression that I want. Sometimes I lie there for perhaps three minutes or even longer just figuring out how I can get off the paper without smudging the image that I’m trying to print.” - David Hammons
1974
Start the Discussion
Request access to join the discussion