When the Cat in the Copycat Was a Dog

Artist Jim Melchert (American, born 1930)

CultureAmerican

Date2016

MediumBroken and glazed porcelain tiles; picture mounted on foam core

DimensionsOverall (each): 29.3 × 28.5 cm (11 9/16 × 11 1/4 in.)

MarkingsSigned Jim Melchert

DescriptionThe work consists of four industrially produced ceramic tiles and one photograph. Since the early 1990s, the artist has worked principally with pre-fabricated tile, generally breaking it and adding glaze in response. Melchert, having been a prominent figure in the Bay Area conceptual art world, has long employed chance operations and rule-based systems in his work. In this piece, the abstract pattern of breakages and glaze derive from the photo included with the work.

Credit LineGift of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York; Hassam, Speicher, Betts and Symons Fund, 2018 Photographer credit: Renée Melchert Thorpe

Object numberG18.4.1a-e

Classifications

Modern and Contemporary Ceramics

Sub-classification

American

Collections

Status

Not on view