Beethoven's Trumpet (with Ear) Opus #132
Beethoven's Trumpet (with Ear) Opus #132
Artist
John Baldessari
(1931 - 2020)
Date2007
MediumFoam, resin, aluminum, cold bronze, and electronics
Dimensions73 x 105 x 72 in. (185.4 x 266.7 x 182.9 cm)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineCrystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2010.6
Accession number
2010.6
On View
Not on viewCollections
Label Text“I visited [Beethoven’s] house and he had a whole cabinet of ear trumpets that he used. I was really fascinated with them as sculptural forms.”
-John Baldessari
Give a low call of "hello" or “boo!” into the trumpet, then wait and listen for Beethoven’s music to respond. When activated, a fragment of a Beethoven string quartet plays through the oversize ear trumpet. In this work, Baldessari explores the paradox of one of history’s most important classical composers, Ludwig van Beethoven, who wrote his most radical music when he was completely deaf.
