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We're Going to Need a Bigger Boat...

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Photo: Dan Fox
We're Going to Need a Bigger Boat...
Photo: Dan Fox

We're Going to Need a Bigger Boat...

Artist (born 1967)
Date2013
MediumLow-fire clay, glaze, and resin
Dimensions23 × 18 × 14 in. (58.4 × 45.7 × 35.6 cm)
ClassificationsCeramics
Credit LineCourtesy Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas
On View
Not on view
Label TextKristen Cliffel considers herself a “storyteller who happens to make sculpture.” Here, the cabin and whale perched precariously atop the boulder convey a feeling of suspense. While based on personal experience, Cliffel intentionally references other stories that feature a whale—such as Pinocchio or the biblical story of Jonah and the whale. In each story, a giant whale swallows the main characters whole. Cliffel’s unusual combinations of objects also invite the viewer to compose and complete the story.

Kristen Cliffel se considera una “narradora que, por casualidad, crea esculturas”. En esta obra, la cabaña y la ballena cuelgan con precariedad desde lo alto de una roca, transmitiendo una sensación de suspenso. Aunque se inspiró en una experiencia personal, Kristen Cliffel alude intencionalmente a otras historias protagonizadas por una ballena, como Pinocho y el relato bíblico de Jonás y la ballena. En cada una de estas historias, una ballena gigantesca se traga por completo a los personajes principales. Las combinaciones inusuales de objetos que propone la artista también invitan al espectador a componer y completar la historia.

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