Nine Tantric Amulets for Jasper Johns

William Harper, Nine Tantric Amulets for Jasper Johns, 1994, gold cloisonné enamel on fine silver with 24k, 22k, 18k, and 14k gold, pearls, garnet, tourmaline, and peridot, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Frances and Sydney Lewis, 2002.11, © 1994, William Harper
William Harper, Nine Tantric Amulets for Jasper Johns, 1994, gold cloisonné enamel on fine silver with 24k, 22k, 18k, and 14k gold, pearls, garnet, tourmaline, and peridot, length: 24 in. (61 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Frances and Sydney Lewis, 2002.11, © 1994, William Harper

Artwork Details

Title
Nine Tantric Amulets for Jasper Johns
Date
1994
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
length: 24 in. (61 cm)
Copyright
© 1994, William Harper
Credit Line
Gift of Frances and Sydney Lewis
Mediums Description
gold cloisonné enamel on fine silver with 24k, 22k, 18k, and 14k gold, pearls, garnet, tourmaline, and peridot
Classifications
Subjects
  • Homage — Johns, Jasper
  • Animal — insect — butterfly
  • Figure — fragment — skull
  • Figure — fragment — hand
Object Number
2002.11

Artwork Description

Artists often borrow from each other, and each time they do they contribute to the deep history of an idea or piece. This necklace is from a series called Jasper’s Variations---a tribute to contemporary painter Jasper Johns. William Harper borrows the crosshatched pattern in the center medallion from Johns’s Between the Clock and the Bed (1981), which itself was inspired by a 1940-42 self-portrait by Edvard Munch with the same title.

The various charms are based on Hindu or Buddhist tantric scriptures, which deal with meditation, sexual techniques, and other rituals. Harper emphasizes the creative bond he feels with Johns by incorporating their names, side by side, in the center of this piece.

Works by this artist (2 items)

Shiang-shin Yeh, Bracelet ALS 16L #2 CL, 1996, anodized aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Zack Peabody, 2000.62.17
Bracelet ALS 16L #2 CL
Date1996
anodized aluminum
Not on view
Shiang-shin Yeh, Brooch PLAT 5C #2 CL, 1997, anodized aluminum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Zack Peabody, 2000.62.16A-C
Brooch PLAT 5C #2 CL
Date1997
anodized aluminum
Not on view

Exhibitions

Media - 2016.11 - SAAM-2016.11_6 - 124929
Connections: Contemporary Craft at the Renwick Gallery
November 13, 2015March 6, 2022
Connections is the Renwick Gallery’s dynamic ongoing permanent collection presentation, featuring more than 80 objects celebrating craft as a discipline and an approach to living differently in the modern world.

More Artworks from the Collection

Unidentified, 48-State Quilt, 20th century, cotton, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr., 1998.84.61
48-State Quilt
Artist
Unidentified
Date20th century
cotton
Not on view
Virginia R. Harris, Candy Box, 1994, machine pieced and quilted cotton and metallic thread, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist in honor of Carolyn L. Mazloomi, Founder of the Women of Color Quilters' Network, 2002.16, © 1994, Virginia R. Harris
Candy Box
Date1994
machine pieced and quilted cotton and metallic thread
Not on view
Evelyn Derr or MBK, Sampler Block Quilt, 1905, cotton, cotton thread, and wool, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr., 1989.30.4
Sampler Block Quilt
Artist
Date1905
cotton, cotton thread, and wool
Not on view
Joan Schulze, The Crossing, 1990, painted, pieced, appliqued and machine-quilted cotton with stitched calligraphy, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Penny Nii and Edward A. Feigenbaum, 1997.1
The Crossing
Date1990
painted, pieced, appliqued and machine-quilted cotton with stitched calligraphy
Not on view