Thursday, December 22, 2016

Bill Woodrow | H.F Dumpty






Bill Woodrow
H.F Dumpty - Momart Christmas Greetings 
London, UK: Momart, 1990
5 x 5 cm.
Edition size unknown

A red bronze metal coin incised and dated by the artist, distributed as the 1990 Momart Christmas greeting card.

"Coins, tanks, ribbon and childhood are recurring motifs in Bill Woodrow's sculpture. In this red bronze coin issued by Momart, Woodrow concentrates all of these potent themes into one design. Generally, each of Woodrow's symbols can be interpreted in a variety of ways.

In the context of the artist's output in 1990, however, each of these images plays a specific role. At the time, coins figured in many of his works, serving as a commentary on consumerism and the culture of consumption. Tanks, meanwhile, were Woodrow's means of addressing the worsening political situation in Croatia, which figured prominently in the news at the time. The artist repeatedly uses ribbon to signify union, a connection between disparate parts. In the figure of Humpty Dumpty, Bill Woodrow presents an easily-recogniseable nursery rhyme character, one who represents fragility."

- The Victoria and Albert Museum

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