The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 28, 2024

Savarin 5 (Corpse and Mirror)

Savarin 5 (Corpse and Mirror)

1978
(American, b. 1930)
printer and publisher
© Jasper Johns / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY
Catalogue raisonné: Field 195; ULAE 195
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Nearly two decades before making this print, Jasper Johns created a sculpture with the same image of paintbrushes in a Savarin coffee can.

Description

Since 1960 Jasper Johns has frequently depicted a Savarin coffee can filled with his paintbrushes, a reference to his studio practice. The image is typical of Johns’s work, which features everyday objects imbued with meaning through his handling of materials. By expressively layering lithographic ink or using his own fingerprints as a compositional element, Johns made his presence evident throughout the series. These personal connections to the artist’s practice suggest that the image may function as a symbolic self-portrait.
  • ?-1983
    (Fendrick Gallery, Washington DC and New York, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH)
    1983-
    Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • A Lasting Impression: Gifts of the Print Club of Cleveland. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 5-September 22, 2019).
  • {{cite web|title=Savarin 5 (Corpse and Mirror)|url=false|author=Jasper Johns, Universal Limited Art Editions|year=1978|access-date=28 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1983.219.5