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IRVING NORMAN(1906-1989)

 
Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind. Irving Norman's masterpiece, "The Human Condition," from 1980, draws upon the artist's lifetime of acquired experiences and knowledge. Surviving as a volunteer fighter during the Spanish Civil War, the artist returned to the United States after the loyalist defeat. Upon his return, fervent studio practice in Half Moon Bay, California, would become his life's devotion.  <br><br>The present work, a nearly 16-foot-wide triptych, is reminiscent of Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Garden of Earthly Delights," c. 1510.  The dystopian vision portrayed in 'The Human Condition" is a warning - a lesson from the European dictatorships Norman experienced firsthand during the 1930s.   Disturbing tableaus show the darkness of humanity and the evil that can rise to prominence when humanity is at its worst.  There is hope, however, in the experience of the viewer: Norman thought of his audience as the greatest hope for humankind.
La condition humaine1980-1981120 x 182 in.(304,8 x 462,28 cm) huile sur toile
Provenance
Musée d'art de Crocker, Sacramento
Exposition
1986 Musée alternatif, New York
2002 Collège de Santa Monica
2006 Musée d'art Crocker, Sacramento
2007 Musée d'art de Californie de Pasadena
2007 Musée d'art Nora Eccles Harrison de l'Université d'État de l'Utah
2007 American University Katzen Museum, Washington, D.C.
Littérature
Dark Metropolis : Irving Norman's Social Surrealism, ed. Scott A. Shields et Ray Day (Sacramento et Berkeley : The Crocker Art Museum et Heyday Books, 2006), p. 199
Le chef-d'œuvre d'Irving Norman, "La condition humaine", de 1980, s'appuie sur les expériences et les connaissances acquises par l'artiste tout au long de sa vie. Survivant en tant que combattant volontaire pendant la guerre civile espagnole, l'artiste est retourné aux États-Unis après la défaite des loyalistes. À son retour, la pratique fervente du studio à Half Moon Bay, en Californie, deviendra le dévouement de sa vie.

La présente œuvre, un triptyque de près de 2 mètres de large, rappelle le triptyque de Hieronymus Bosch, "Le jardin des délices terrestres", vers 1510. La vision dystopique dépeinte dans "La condition humaine" est un avertissement, une leçon tirée des dictatures européennes que Norman a connues dans les années 1930. Des tableaux inquiétants montrent l'obscurité de l'humanité et le mal qui peut s'élever au premier plan lorsque l'humanité est au plus mal. L'expérience du spectateur est cependant porteuse d'espoir : Norman considérait son public comme le plus grand espoir pour l'humanité.
demander