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Dr. Caligari
198492 1/2 x 31 1/2 x 26 1/2 in. (235 x 80 x 67.3 cm)
Wendell Castle
United States (Emporia, KS, 1932 - 2018, Scottsville, NY)
Object Type:
Sculpture
Medium and Support:
Curly cherry veneer, ebony and gold-plated brass
Credit Line:
Given in honor of Joan M. Vanden Brul by her family
Accession Number:
1988.1
Location: Not currently on view
Dr. Caligari is among a series of thirteen clocks that Wendell Castle created in the 1980s. He made them at the suggestion of his dealer, who urged him to create a body of work that would challenge the critics’ association of Castle with functional furniture. Castle was particularly interested in the concept of time, and Dr. Caligari is a fanciful exploration of time travel. Its tall case is rich with connections to traditional grandfather clocks. It suggests either a trip to the past in an ancient obelisk, or to the future, in a rocket ship.
The title of the work was inspired by the angular set design of the 1920 German Expressionist film, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. The clock’s painted interior was intended to suggest the silent horror film’s unsettling mood. Castle and his longtime associate Don Sottile developed a smearing technique using India ink over gesso that gave the painted finish its distinctive feathered edges.
[Summer 2015]
The title of the work was inspired by the angular set design of the 1920 German Expressionist film, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. The clock’s painted interior was intended to suggest the silent horror film’s unsettling mood. Castle and his longtime associate Don Sottile developed a smearing technique using India ink over gesso that gave the painted finish its distinctive feathered edges.
[Summer 2015]
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Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions:
- Time and Defiance of Gravity 7/12/1986 - 11/2/1986
- Furniture by Wendell Castle 12/5/1989 - 4/30/1991
- Wendell Castle in Rochester 12/8/2004 - 6/18/2006
- Wendell Castle: About Time 9/13/2008 - 12/13/2008
Bibliography
This object has the following bibliographic references:
- Article Scope: Reproduction only. Susan Dodge Peters, ed. Memorial Art Gallery: An Introduction to the Collection. New York, New York: Memorial Art Gallery in association with Hudson Hills Press, 1988.
- Article Title: Gallery Acquires Castle Clock. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Memorial Art Gallery. Gallery Notes. Rochester, New York: Memorial Art Gallery, 1935-1995. Issue Date: January-February 1989. Page Number: 9
- Article Author: Low, Stuart. Article Title: Practical Interpretations. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, NY: Rochester Print Co. Issue Date: 12/12/2004.
- Article Author: Lucie-Smith, Edward. Article Title: Time Capsules. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. ARTnews. New York, New York: ARTnews Associates Issue Date: March 1986. Page Number: 110-114
- Brighton-Pittsford Post. Pittsford, NY
- Article Author: Gimelson, Deborah. Article Title: Art of Crafts?. Article Scope: Mention. Amy Page, ed. Art & Auction. New York, NY: Magazine Publications Volume Number: 8, Issue Number: 4. Issue Date: October 1985. Page Number: 102,104
- Article Title: A Hundred Years and Counting. Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Rochester Review. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press Issue Date: November-December 2012. Page Number: 20
- MAGazine. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery
- Memorial Art Gallery. ARTiculate. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 2000--.
- Washington Post. Washington, D.C.: Washington Post
- Times-Union. Rochester, NY: Gannett
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Time and Defiance of Gravity: Recent Works by Wendell Castle. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 1986.
- Article Author: Netsky, Ron. Article Title: Wendell Castle: Crossing the Line that Separates Craftwork from Artwork. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Upstate Magazine. Issue Date: July 6, 1986. Page Number: 7-9
- Connoisseur.
- Article Title: Art as Furniture. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. University of Rochester: the 2004-2005 year. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester, 2005. Page Number: 9
- Article Author: Dodge-Peters, Susan. Article Title: The Big Time. Article Scope: Mention. City Newspaper. Rochester, NY Issue Date: July 24 1986. Page Number: 19
- Article Author: Eldredge, Charles C.. Article Title: Of Time and Materials: The Art of Wendell Castle. Charles C. Eldredge. Wendell Castle: About Time. Lawrence, KS: Spencer Museum of Art, 2008. Page Number: 47, Figure Number: 9
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Wendell Castle: About Time. Lawrence, KS: Spencer Museum of Art, 2008.
- Article Author: Jacobson, Sebby Wilson. Article Title: A Portrait of the Artist as a Very Young Octogenarian. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. American Craft. Volume Number: 72, Issue Number: 6. Issue Date: December 2012/January 2013. Page Number: 72
- Article Author: Lehmann, Gary. Article Title: How Heavy are You?. Article Scope: Poetry. Community Voices in the Gallery: a Collection of Writings by Members of our Community Inspired by Works of Art at the Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 2009. Page Number: 21
- Article Scope: Catalogue Raisonné entry and reproduction. Emily Evans Eerdmans. Wendell Castle: A Catalogue Raisonné, 1958-2012. New York, NY: Artist Book Foundation, 2014.
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Davira S. Taragin. Furniture by Wendell Castle. New York, NY: Hudson Hill Press, 1989.
- Article Author: Pearlman, Chee. Article Title: Perfect Timing. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Industrial Design. Issue Date: January/February 1986. Page Number: 18-23
- Article Title: Notizen: Auf der Suche Nach der Komischen Zeit. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Ambiente. Offenburg, W. Germany: Burda Issue Date: March 1986. Page Number: 22
- Article Author: Canty, Donald. Article Title: The Arts: Castle Turns to Towering Clocks. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Architecture. Washington, DC Volume Number: 75, Issue Number: 2. Issue Date: February 1986. Page Number: 22-23, Figure Number: 5
- Renwick Quarterly.
- Antiques & the Arts Weekly.
- Article Author: Voell, Paula. Article Title: Premier Designer: Wendell Castle Has His Own School for Craftsmen. Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Buffalo News. Issue Date: February 16, 1986. Page Number: H1, H3
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Marjorie Searl and Lu Harper. The Memorial Art Gallery: 100 Years. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 2013.
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