Mel Bochner (1940–2023)
Master of the Universe, 2022
Monoprint in oil on cast paper
78 × 46 1/4 in (198.1 × 117.5 cm)
Signed and dated, recto
Unique work
Created during the final chapter of his career, Master of the Universe is a powerful late example of Mel Bochner’s iconic language-based practice. Thick bands of oil carry stacked text across the surface, turning words into physical objects, weighty, confrontational, and quietly humorous.
Bochner spent a lifetime challenging the authority and instability of language, and in these late “thesaurus” works, meaning is pressed, layered, and embodied. At this monumental scale, the work commands space and reads across a room, while retaining the intimacy of the artist’s hand. Large, unique works of this ambition have become increasingly scarce and are now most often placed privately or absorbed by institutions.
Available privately.
For details, please contact me directly. reed@robinrile.com
