Reservoir

Robert Rauschenberg, Reservoir, 1961, oil, wood, graphite, fabric, metal, and rubber on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., 1969.47.70
Robert Rauschenberg, Reservoir, 1961, oil, wood, graphite, fabric, metal, and rubber on canvas, 85 1262 1215 12 in. (217.2158.739.4 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., 1969.47.70

Artwork Details

Title
Reservoir
Date
1961
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
85 1262 1215 12 in. (217.2158.739.4 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc.
Mediums Description
oil, wood, graphite, fabric, metal, and rubber on canvas
Classifications
Highlights
Subjects
  • Allegory — time
  • Abstract
Object Number
1969.47.70

Artwork Description

Reservoir is one of the hybrid works known as "Combines" that Robert Rauschenberg made between 1954 and 1964. Described by Rauschenberg's contemporary Jasper Johns as "painting playing the game of sculpture," the Combines incorporate both two- and three-dimensional elements, using objects Rauschenberg collected from the streets of his lower Manhattan neighborhood. Reservoir incorporates a length of wood, two clocks, and a couple of cast-off wheels to reflect on the always changing and surprising contrasts of everyday experience. The arrangement of objects and the thick, splashy brushstrokes represent his split-second decisions, and the two clocks precisely record when he started the work and the moment he considered it finished.