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Sterling Ruby — Monument Stalagmite / Icolagnia
Sterling Ruby

Monument Stalagmite / Icolagnia

A towering assemblage of industrial and synthetic materials, Ruby's work stacks and fuses PVC pipe, Formica, urethane, and spray paint into a crude, stalagmite-like formation that rises with raw, visceral energy. The piece draws on the visual language of urban detritus and underground subcultures, collapsing distinctions between sculpture, graffiti, and found-object construction. Its dual title—referencing both geological formations and the psychological term for arousal through imagery—suggests a tension between the abject and the seductive embedded within the work's imposing physical presence.

Medium
PVC pipe, formica, urethane, spray paint and wood

🔨 Auction Lot

Contemporary Art Day Sale

June 30, 2015

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About this work

Sterling Ruby, Monument Stalagmite / Icolagnia

A towering assemblage of industrial and synthetic materials, Ruby's work stacks and fuses PVC pipe, Formica, urethane, and spray paint into a crude, stalagmite-like formation that rises with raw, visceral energy. The piece draws on the visual language of urban detritus and underground subcultures, collapsing distinctions between sculpture, graffiti, and found-object construction. Its dual title—referencing both geological formations and the psychological term for arousal through imagery—suggests a tension between the abject and the seductive embedded within the work's imposing physical presence.

Medium
PVC pipe, formica, urethane, spray paint and wood
Seen at
Phillips, New York, London, Hong Kong

Related themes

Dark Mood, Male Artist, Sculpture, Mixed Media, Industrial Materials, Contemporary Artist, Earthy Tones, American Artist, Raw Aesthetic, Postminimalism, Abstract Forms, 21st Century, Three-Dimensional, Abstract, Post-Modern

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