List of invisible artworks

This is a list of invisible artworks; that is, works of art that cannot be seen and, in many cases, touched.

Invisible artworks

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Artist Title Year Description
Yves Klein "Zone de Sensibilité Picturale Immatérielle" (Zone of Immaterial Pictorial Sensibility) 1959 Consists of the sale of documentation of ownership of empty space; the piece could be completed in a ritual in which the buyer would burn said documentation.
Marinus Boezem "Show V: Immateriële ruimte" (Immaterial space) 1965 Consists of three "air doors" made from currents of cold and warm air blown into the room.[1]
Michael Asher "Vertical Column of Accelerated Air" 1966 Drafts of pressurized air.[2]
Art & Language (group) "Air-Conditioning Show [fr]" or "Air Show" 1967 An empty room with two air conditioning units; the artwork is "what is felt and said about it", and not anything tangible.[3]
James Lee Byars "The Ghost of James Lee Byars" 1969 The artwork itself is the emptiness and darkness of a pitch-black room.[4][5]
Robert Barry "Telepathic Piece" 1969 An artwork "the nature of which is a series of thoughts that are not applicable to language or image", which Barry would communicate telepathically to visitors during the exhibit.[6]
Andy Warhol "Invisible Sculpture" 1985 Consists of an invisible, intangible sculpture atop a white pedestal.[3]
Tom Friedman "Untitled (A Curse)" 1992 Similar to Warhol's sculpture, but a witch was reportedly hired to curse the space immediately above the pedestal.[3]
Teresa Margolles "Aire" (Air) 2003 Similar to Air Show, the artwork consists of a room with air humidified with water used to wash corpses before autopsy.[7]
Jeppe Hein "Invisible Labyrinth" 2005 A maze with invisible and intangible walls; visitors are given headphones that vibrate when they "touch" a wall.[2]
Roman Ondak "More Silent Than Ever" 2006 The artwork consists of a covert listening device supposedly hidden somewhere in the (empty) exhibition room: visitors are told they are being eavesdropped. The device itself cannot be seen, and no evidence is given that it really exists.[8]
Salvatore Garau "Buddha in Contemplazione" (Buddha in Contemplation) 2021 An invisible, intangible sculpture.[9]
Salvatore Garau "Io Sono" (I am) 2021 Another invisible, intangible sculpture, that occupies a square area with side of 5 ft (1.5 m).[9]
Ruben Gutierrez "This Sculpture Makes Me Cry (A Spell)" 2022 An immaterial, invisible sculpture atop a small white pedestal, displayed as part of a bigger exhibit. It is said to represent what the artist cannot see, but which affects him emotionally, making him feel invisible and insignificant.[10][11]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Marinus Boezem Solo Exhibition 'All Shows' at Kröller Müller Museum". Upstream Gallery. Amsterdam. 1 May 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  2. ^ a b Rugoff, Ralph (10 June 2012). "The 10 best… invisible artworks". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  3. ^ a b c Blake, Robin (27 July 2012). "The power of sights unseen". Financial Times. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  4. ^ White, Lindsey; Stein, Jordan; Kasprzak, David (eds.). "The Ghost of James Lee Byars: A Retrospective". Will Brown. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  5. ^ Budick, Ariella (25 June 2014). "James Lee Byars: 1/2 an Autobiography, MoMA PS1, New York – review". Financial Times. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  6. ^ Drinkall, Jacquelene; Neidich, Warren (2016). "Immaterial Technologies of Mindedness". Journal of Neuroaesthetics. Telepathy and Art. Artbrain.org. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  7. ^ "TERESA MARGOLLES - Muerte sin fin". Museum für Moderne Kunst. 2004. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  8. ^ Grúň, Daniel (19 March 2009). "Roman Ondák: More Silent Than Ever". SME (in Slovak). Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  9. ^ a b Santora, Sara (1 June 2021). "Italian Artist Sells Invisible Sculpture for More Than $18,000". Newsweek. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  10. ^ "Forzar la puerta del presente". Colector Gallery. 2 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  11. ^ Gutierrez, Ruben [@rubeneitor] (7 February 2022). "This Sculpture Makes Me Cry (A Spell) 2022" (in Spanish). Mexico City. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022 – via Instagram.