Provenance
Xavier Hufkens, Brussels
Acquired from the above by the present owner
Catalogue Essay
Executed in 2009, SP73 is amongst one of the early examples of Sterling Ruby’s iconic spray paint works, which he began just two years earlier. Inspired by the graffiti tagging and vandalism prevalent in his hometown of Los Angeles where he lives and works, this monumental composition draws upon the visual language prevalent in street art. Rendered in innumerable layers of spray paint, Ruby appropriates their cultural aesthetic and elevates them to a ‘high-art’ form, creating large-scale, abstract canvases that are still reminiscent of their urban roots.

The dark, black ground is obfuscated by rippling swathes of bright pink and blue pigment, mimicking the inky surface of water, and interspersed with harsh, scattered drips that break the elusive surface of the canvas, whist the composition is encroached by an ominous dark haze that threatens to overpower the work entirely. The overall effect is one of mesmeric depth and illusionary, painterly abstraction, whilst still recalling the aerosol, gestural mark-making loaded with connotations of city gang graffiti and urban demarcation.

Born in 1972, Ruby studied at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. His works are held in numerous public collections including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, as well as the Tate Modern, London, the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, amongst others.

10

Sterling Ruby

SP73

signed with the artist's initials, titled and dated ''SP73' SR.09' on the reverse
spray paint on canvas
243.8 x 213.3 x 5.1 cm (95 7/8 x 83 7/8 x 2 in.)
Executed in 2009.

Price On Request

Summer Wave

1
Andy Warhol
Two works: i-ii) Flowers
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
2
Stephan Vanfleteren
Marine Oostduinkerke 3
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
3
Stephan Vanfleteren
Marine Oostduinkerke 2
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
4
Stephan Vanfleteren
Marine Oostduinkerke 1
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
5
This lot is no longer available.
6
Walter Swennen
Untitled
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
7
Léon Spilliaert
Marine with sunset
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
8
Ettore Spalletti
Grigio, oro
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
9
Sterling Ruby
ASHTRAY 30
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
10
Sterling Ruby
SP73
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
11
Loïc Raguénès
Les Parfums de la Nuit
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
12
Joan Miro
Sans titre
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
13
Tony Matelli
565
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
14
Robert Mapplethorpe
Waves
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
15
Sol LeWitt
Untitled
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
16
Sol LeWitt
Tangled Bands
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
17
Laurens Legiers
A Snail's Journey
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
18
Titus Kaphar
Untitled Tar Piece
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
19
Hans Hartung
T1971-H50
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
20
David Hammons
Head warmer
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
21
Gilbert & George
Piss Piss Piss
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
22
Bernard Frize
Obias
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
23
Peter Dreher
Tag um Tag guter Tag (Day by Day good Day) Nr. 2520
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
24
Peter Dreher
Tag um Tag guter Tag (Day by Day good Day) Nr. 2522
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
25
Raoul De Keyser
Oostende (Tornado)
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
26
Alexander Calder
Snakes Puzzle
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
27
Alexander Calder
Crag with White Flower and White Discs
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
28
Alexander Calder
L'Ile Verte
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
29
Guillaume Bijl
"James Ensor in Oostende" circa 1920
Price On Request
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.

Summer Wave

Create your first list.

Provenance

Catalogue Essay

10

Sterling Ruby

SP73

Summer Wave

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.

Create your first list.