Created using the classical lost wax process of bronze casting, WEN OUT FOR CIGRETS N NEVER CAME BACK by Ed Ruscha joins this ancient technique with one of the most iconic contemporary artists of our time. This Lapis Press edition takes Ruscha's oblique use of language to the third dimension, bringing negative space and shadow to life.
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Photo: Joshua White Photography"I'm interested in glorifying something that we in the world would say doesn't deserve being glorified. Something that's forgotten, focused on as though it were some sort of sacred object." - Ed Ruscha
WEN OUT FOR CIGRETS N NEVER CAME BACK sprung from a serifed font drawn by Ruscha for this work. The letters, in their rendering and placement, have a faint irregularity denoting Ruscha's sign-making beginnings. There is a balanced tension between the machine-made quality of the letters and the handcrafted undulations of the base, the sharp angles of the transience implied by the words jutting from hand patinated bronze. This text has an enigmatic storytelling quality that goes around the steering wheel shape like a refrain from a country song about a hard hewn life. The music of this phrase is classic American vernacular, the hard "r"s and dropped consonants spoken with sideways innuendo. Car culture, wanderlust, beginnings and endings come to mind here, conjuring the restless spirit of literary heroes.
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Ideation
Ed Ruscha initially came to The Lapis Press with just a concept. Eventually, the final design for the edition was invented. -
The Foundry
The first step in bringing this edition to life is pouring the molten bronze into the 3D printed molds. Once finished, the bronze components from each mold will be assembled into a complete sculpture. -
Patina
After the foundry, the bronzes undergo the patina process. -
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