Random Elements

Copied Harold Tovish, Random Elements, 1979, wood/cut, assembled and glued on integral base, 128 349 14 in. (30.522.223.5 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Sara Roby Foundation, 1986.6.81

Artwork Details

Title
Random Elements
Date
1979
Dimensions
128 349 14 in. (30.522.223.5 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of the Sara Roby Foundation
Mediums
Mediums Description
wood/cut, assembled and glued on integral base
Classifications
Keywords
  • Figure male — head
Object Number
1986.6.81

Artwork Description

Random Elements is one of the final pieces in Harold Tovish's Transformations series. Tovish started with a carefully modeled self-portrait, Unit of Measure, which he then used to create fourteen variations. Although each piece looks very different from the original, Tovish maintains the same measure of volume. Random Elements, a construction of stacked wooden blocks, appears almost abstract, making it difficult for us to recognize it as the artist's self-portrait.