Back to the Drawing Board: Ed Ruscha 1956 – 68
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Back to the Drawing Board: Ed Ruscha 1956 – 68 The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Quick, Jennifer Eileen. 2015. Back to the Drawing Board: Ed Ruscha 1956 – 68. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:17467368 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA Back to the Drawing Board: Ed Ruscha 1956 – 68 A dissertation presented by Jennifer Eileen Quick to The Department of History of Art and Architecture in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the subject of History of Art and Architecture Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts April 2015 © 2015 – Jennifer Eileen Quick All rights reserved. Dissertation Advisor: Professor Robin Kelsey Jennifer Eileen Quick Back to the Drawing Board: Ed Ruscha 1956 – 68 Abstract This dissertation considers Ed Ruscha’s work through the theoretical lens of tacit knowledge, thereby making the argument that the commercial artist’s drawing board, and the world that it embodies, constitutes the material and conceptual framework of his 1960s art. Educated at Los Angeles’s Chouinard Art Institute, where he studied advertising design from 1956–60, Ruscha received extensive instruction in all aspects of two-dimensional design, from layout to typography. As he began to pursue a fine art career, the mechanics and methods of drawing board production became a model for art making as reflective upon and transformative of the designed world. It was through his drawing board methods that Ruscha addressed foundational concerns of post World War II art, such as the nature of the picture plane, art’s relationship to consumer culture, the workings of vision and perception, and the mechanics of printed matter. Alongside histories of the avant-garde and mass culture, the dissertation proposes a new narrative of Ruscha’s art, from the point of view of practice and in regard to the technical skills and conceptual operations of mid-century design. The dissertation concludes with a reflection on the history lessons and contemporary relevance of Ruscha’s work. iii Table of Contents Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………....v List of Illustrations ………………………………………………………………………viii List of Frequently Cited Sources …………………………………………………………xix Introduction: Back to the Drawing Board…………………………………………………..1 Chapter 1: “Draw the Idea:” Chouinard Art Institute, 1956–60…………………………....24 Chapter 2: Painting Without Scale………………………………………………………...66 Chapter 3: Paste-up Pictures: Every Building on the Sunset Strip……………………………..112 Chapter 4: Projective Space: Architecture and Perspective……………………………….168 Conclusion: Design Machines……………………………………………………………221 Selected Bibliography……..……………………………………………………………...230 iv Acknowledgments There is not enough space here, or enough words, to adequately thank those who supported me during the long dissertation process. My thanks must begin with Ed Ruscha, whom I first met in September 2013. From that moment, Ed has been unfailingly generous and welcoming, not only answering all of my questions but giving me unfettered access to his studio. A scholar can only dream of such a productive collaboration; I am thankful that it has been my reality. Ed’s studio is a wonderful space, not only because of the richness of the objects and activities within, but even more because of the people who bring it to life. I am especially grateful for the assistance of Mary Dean, always warm and gracious, and Susan Haller and Paul Ruscha, who helped with any request I made and provided wonderful company and conversation. It has been a privilege to work with my dissertation committee. Since my first day in the program, my advisor, Robin Kelsey, has been a dedicated mentor and advocate. A model scholar and teacher, Robin’s generosity, accessibility, and encouragement to pursue my own path have made my experience at Harvard intellectually and personally rewarding. I have been fortunate to work with Jennifer Roberts, whose intellectual brilliance, generous mentorship, and extraordinary dedication to her students continues to be a source of inspiration. Benjamin Buchloh has been immensely supportive and has consistently sharpened me as a scholar, from my first readings of his work as an undergraduate to my time in his seminars. I also want to thank other faculty, especially Maria Gough, Carrie Lambert-Beatty, and Yukio Lippit, whose seminars were invaluable and who provided counsel and support. Finally, many, many thanks to the tireless Deanna Dalrymple for her organizational acuity and willingness to answer any and every question I posed to her throughout the years. v At Harvard, I want to thank the stellar staff of the Harvard Art Museums, especially Susan Dackerman, Deborah Kao, Mary Lister, Laura Muir, Lynette Roth, Mary Schneider- Enriquez, and former Thye Fellow Maja Wismer. Thanks as well to the staff of the Strauss Center for Conservation and Technical Studies and the Fine Arts Library. Among my colleagues, I want to single out Maggie Inness, Sam Johnson, Matt Jolly, David Pullins, Trevor Stark, Jordan Troeller, and Taylor Walsh – thank you for challenging and inspiring me as a scholar, and for your friendship. Special thanks as well to colleagues Ruth Erickson, Tessa Paneth-Pollak, and Martina Tanga, fellow members of the feminist working group and graduate advocacy committee, who provided conversation and support during the most challenging moments of graduate school. Finally, before my time at Harvard, I spent six and a half years at the University of Maryland. To all those who invested in me then, especially Renée Ater, Sharon Gerstel, Quint Gregory, Steven Mansbach, Sally Promey, and above all Joshua Shannon, thank you. Thank you as well to brilliant colleagues and close friends Megan Parker and Adam Greenhalgh. A warm thanks also to those with whom I worked at the National Portrait Gallery, especially Frank Goodyear and above all Anne Collins Goodyear, a dear friend and dedicated mentor. I could have not have completed this project without generous institutional support. A Research Grant from the Getty Foundation made it possible to spend weeks at the Getty Research Institute, pouring over the Ruscha collections. Virginia Heckert, at the Getty Museum, and John Tain and Beth Guynn, at the GRI, have been especially helpful. I spent a rewarding and productive year at the Smithsonian American Art Museum as the Patricia and Phillip Frost Predoctoral Fellow. Thanks especially to Amelia Goerlitz, Dorothy Moss, and Asma Naeem, and as well as my fellow Fellows. A Finishing Grant from the Radcliffe vi Institute for Advanced Study provided support, a brilliant community, and a lovely office for my final year. Other institutions that have provided support and access include the Archives of American Art, Art Center College of Design, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and Whitney Museum of American Art. I marvel every day at my wonderful community of friends and loving family. Among my friends, thank you to Maggie, Liz, and Catherine – you have been there since the beginning of this process. Also a warm thanks to my church family at Highrock, especially Sarah and Shin and Emily and Nate. My extended family (especially my grandparents, aunts, and my cousin Erica) has offered support, encouragement, and prayer though this process; my gratitude to them is immeasurable. My husband’s family has become my own over the years; thank you, Big W, Nancy, Matt, and Kathleen, for your endless love and support. For my sister-in-law Heather – thank you for being one of my biggest cheerleaders. It was a special day when you became a part of our family. For my brother Chris – you are an inspiration and a role model; what a special gift to have a sibling in the world of art and design, and even more, such a generous and loving brother. To my husband Walt – every day I thank God for giving me the gift of you. You have listened, read, edited, and helped me to keep it all in perspective; thank you for being my rock. To Steve – you came into our lives at a moment when we needed you; thank you for never giving up on us and for your immeasurable love. Finally, to my mother, who took me to my first art exhibitions, taught me how to look, and shaped me into the person I am today. You sacrificed so much for us, more than we could ever know. This dissertation is dedicated to you, with all my love and gratitude. vii List of Illustrations All works of art are by Ed Ruscha, © Edward J. Ruscha IV, unless otherwise noted. Introduction Figure I.1 Peter Arno, “Back to the old drawing board,” The New Yorker, 1941 Chapter 1 Figure 1.1 Poster entered in Oklahoma City Scholastic Art Contest, 1955. Ruscha studio, Culver City, California Figure 1.2 Chouinard Art Institute, Catalogue for 1960 – 61, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution Figure 1.3 Chouinard students using portable drawing boards in an animation course, for an assignment on capturing facial expressions, Chouinard Art Institute 1946 – 47 brochure, Archives of American Art Figure 1.4 CBS Radio Ad, from Annual of Advertising Editorial Art and Design, Art Directors Club of New York, 1956 Figure 1.5 Hand holding lead. From Charles J. Felten, Layout: The Practical Application of Principles of Design to Advertising and Printing, 1954 Figure 1.6 Leonard A. Wheeler, a prominent local designer who occasionally taught courses on package engineering and design at Chouinard. Chouinard Art Institute brochure, Fall and Winter 1941, Archives of American Art Figure 1.7 Layout tools illustration.