TheArt(Hand)ofRubeGoldberg CreightonMichael

GrandRapidsMuseumofArtJune8,2017

Collection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

Whyme?Anintroduction

Throughamutualfriendin2013,IlearnedabouttheimminentpublicationofTheArtofRubeGoldbergtowhichIsaid,“thatbookneedsanexhibition.”SubsequentlyImetJenniferGeorge,RubeGoldberg’sgranddaughter,andpresentedmyidea,whichsheenthusiasticallyaccepted.IofferedthepositionofcuratortoacolleagueofmineatHunterCollegesinceIamnotacuratormoreaccuratelyacuratorialinstigator.MaxWeintraubandIhadworkedwelltogetheronpreviousprojectsandhewasinterestedintheuniquecharacterofthisendeavor.Ironically,hisfatherdecadesearlierhadeditedafilmbyRubeGoldberg.Oncewewereinagreement,IcalledDavidFurchgott,thenPresidentandCEOofInternationalArtsandArtistsanorganizationthattravelsexhibitions.IhadknownDavidfortyyearsearlierastheDirectoroftheInternationalSculptureCenter.AsadevotedfanofRubeGoldberg’swork,DavidwasthrilledwiththepossibilityoftouringanexhibitionfocusingonRube’sdrawingsandprocess.HesuggestedIsendaproposaltopresenttohisexhibitioncommittee.Ididandastheysay,therestishistory.

Inthe60’sthenameRubeGoldbergwassynonymouswithcauseandeffectcontraptionsorthemostcircuitouswaytosolveaproblem.Ineithercasethesituationwasalwaysahumorousone.Myearlyinterestsindrawingandhumorleadmetomakingcartoons,firstatmyhighschoolweeklypaperandlaterasacartoonistwithmyownboxatmycollege’sdailynewspaperin1968.

Nixon’sThreePartCampaignStrategyTheDailyBeaconUniversityofTennessee1968

Situations:TheExecution,TheDRUID,WinterEdition,UniversityofTennessee1970

Asayoungartist,IwassointriguedwithRube’scontraptionsthatIdevelopedafewRubeGoldberginspiredinkdrawingssuchasTheStreetCleaner(1972)andDaydream(1975).Itisdifficulttosee,butDaydreamisacollectionofconstructionsitesinfestedwithcontraptions.Amazingly,alittleoverfourdecadeslaterIwouldmeetandworkwithhisgranddaughter,JenniferGeorge,onanexhibitioncelebratingnotjustthemindbutalsoandmorespecificallythehandofRubeGoldberg.

IntheBeginning

TheinitialobjectiveofthisexhibitionwastoshowRube’shandandbyextensioninsightintohisthoughtandprocess,connectinghisdrawingstohisinventions.Thispresentationwillfurtherexplorehisdrawingsthroughexample,contextandcontradictions,notonlytheinfluencesheexperiencedswirlingaroundhiminthehustleandbustleofNewYorkatthebeginningofthe20thcentury,butalsopossiblehistoricalones.Itismysincerehopethatthisbriefdiscoursewillleavetheaudiencewithmorequestionsthananswersandadifferentlensthroughwhichtoappreciatetheworkofthemultifacetedartistandgenius,ReubenGarrettLuciusGoldberg,affectionatelyknownasRubeGoldberg.

1904

Theworksfrom1904exhibitavisualsophisticationunusualfora21yearoldespeciallyone,whowasvirtuallyself-taught!Noticehisuseofpatternthatdirectstheviewer’seyearoundandthroughthecompositioninrhythmicfashion;thecorporealityorplasticityofhisfigures;hisuseofcaricature;hisconvincingsenseofmotion/movementandprobablymostimportantly,hisabilitytosuggestpersonalitysimplythroughafigure’sposture.Inmanywaysthesefourdrawingsforecasthisfutureendeavorsincludingafewyearsinvaudeville.

AndThisHappensEveryday1906

Rube’sfirstcomicstrip.Thelinearnarrativehasalonghistoryinthevisualarts.Duringmyresearch,Iwasremindedofthesimilaritybetweenacomicstripandthepredellapanelsofmedievalaltarpieces.Predellapanelswerenarratives,oftensequentialstoriesconcerningeitherthelifecyclesofChristorsaints,especiallylocalorregionalreligiouscelebrities.Portraitsofthepatronandfamilymemberswerefrequentlyincluded.IfonewantstoviewthedevelopmentofWesternEuropeanpainting,itcanbeseeninthepredellapanelswheretheartistwasgivenmorelicensetoexperiment.Thesesmallerpanelswereconsideredlessimportantthatthe“big”picture.

AndreaMantegna(1431-1506)SanZenoaltarpiece1456-59Verona,Italy

PredellaPanelsGardenofGethsemane CrucifixionResurrection

St.CatherineofAlexandriaSt.JeromeNativitySt.SebastianSt.George

CarloCrivelli(1460-1495) AltarpiecefromS.FrancescodeiZoccolantiafter1490NationalGallery,London

RaphaelYoungmanasleeponthegroundc.1504Collection:BritishMuseum

WhilevisitingtheRenaissance,let’slookattheoriginoftheword,cartoon,whichcomesfromtheItaliancartonemeaning“cardboard”.Largesheetscontainingthedrawingwouldbetransferredontothewalldesignatedforthefrescousingatechniqueknownaspouncingthatpusheddrypigmentthroughthesmallcontourholesofthecartoonleavinganimageontheplaster’ssurfacefromwhichtheartistwouldwork.

RubeGoldbergmovestoNewYorkCityin1907

ImagesoftheNewYorkCitythatRubeGoldbergwouldhaveseen.HearrivesjustintimefortheBankPanicof1907(marketlossof50%).ViewsofWallStreet,CanalStreetwesttoMulberryStreet,HeraldSquareandDelanceyStreetwesttoEssexStreetin1907.

Goldberg’sfirstjobwasasasportscartoonist.InFoolishQuestions,onegetsaglimpseintohisprocesswiththefaintpencilmarksundertheink.Agoodexampleofatmosphericperspectiveisseenwiththefigureintheoppositecourtdrawnlighterandwithlessdetail.Noticeinthetwostripstotherighthowtheplacementofcontrastingtonesdeveloparhythminthecompositionthatunderscoresthemainfigure’smovement.

Usinghisobservationsatsportingeventsasastartingpoint,Goldbergemploysampleuseofdiagonalsandasymmetricalplacementscombinedwithscaleshiftstokeepthisdrawingperpetuallyactive.Itforecastshisworkinanimationfiveyearslater.

Incontrasttothepreviousslide,diagonalshereareusedtosuspendtheseeminglyweightlessfigureinmidair.Goldbergachievesthisbyplacingthefigureoverheadandoffbalance,drawnwithcross-contourlinesgivinghimlessperceivedweightagainstthecontrastingsilhouettesofthemenanchoredbelow.Compositionallysuchjuxtaposingcreatesasenseofbuoyancywiththefigurealoft.

InhisPrescriptiontotheDrugstore,Goldbergcombineselementsofvaudevillewithanimationtoproducethisgaglinenarrativethattakestheviewerfromapointofempatheticconcerntobeingthebuttofthejoke.Itisafascinatinginterweavinguseofspatialsystemstodescribethepaceandspaceoftime.

InTheBoobFamilyShortstoryaboutaShortBlanket,weseeanimationasaseriesofstills.Sincetheviewerisengagedincompletingthenarrative,theexperiencebecomesanactivenotapassiveone.ThisisthewaythecomicstripsweremattedwhenMaxWeintraubandIfirstsawthem.

BecauseMaxandIwantedtheviewertohaveaglimpseintoRube’sprocess,thedecisionwasmadetorecuteachmatexposingthe“thoughts”aswellasanynotationsinthemarginsofeachdrawing.

Otherexamples.Withthemarginsexposed,thedrawingscouldbeseenasdocumentsorarchivesofthepast,whichofcoursetheywere.

“AlmosteverythingIseeorhearisusefulinonewayoranotherascontaininganideaforapicture.Icanneverfindanythinginthenewscolumnsthathelpsandalmostneveranythinginabook.Itiswhatyouseefromdaytodayandwhatyouhavebeenseeingandrememberingallyourlifethatprovidesthestockintrade.”RubeGoldberg

ThiswasaperiodinNewYorkCity’shistoryinwhichamazingchangeswereoccurringsocially,culturallyandeconomically.ForanastuteobserverlikeRubeGoldberg,thestimulationmusthavebeendelightfullyoverwhelming.Asacommentatoronhumanandsocialbehaviorandonewholiterallydrewfromthesourcesaroundhim,RubeisinthecompanyofsuchRenaissancemastersasHieronymusBoschandPieterBruegeltheElder.

HieronymusBoschstudyofcripples RubeGoldberg HeadStudiesCollection:GraphischeSammlungAlbertina,Vienna Collection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

BothBoschandGoldbergbuilttheirvisualglossarybyobservingthepeople.

HieronymusBosch TheHaywainTriptychc.1516Collection:MuseodelPrado

InBosch’sHaywainTriptychallegoricalinteractionsareoccurringonasharedpictureplanecreatingtheillusionofaunifiedsetting.Mostofthesymbolismemployedintheseintimatenarrativeswasbasedoncontemporaryvernacular,muchofwhichhasbeenlostintime.

InGoldberg’sdrawingcirca1911,thescene,amontagedcityscape,issuggestednotdepictedwithvariouscharactersinteractingoverarelatedthemesignificanttosocialissuesoftheday.AswithBosch’sintimateexchanges,someofthemeaningsfromacenturyagoarelosttoustoday.

Withthesetwoexamplesonestreetscene(Don’tLetBusinessInterfereWithMiniatureGolf1925),theotheraninterior(TheirFirstSteamHeat-TheBiggestEventoftheYearcirca1918),GoldberglikeBoschcombinesvariousepisodicactivitiesoccurringatdifferenttimesinasharedpictorialspace.Inthetopcartoon,thespaceisrenderedbyincorporatingbothatmosphericandlinearperspectivesystems,whiletheloweroneshowstheinfluenceofastageset.

PieterBruegeltheElderThePeasantDance1567KunsthistorischesMuseum,Vienna,Austria

Lessverbal,morepictorial,Bruegelalsoillustratesissuesofthedayinanurbansettingconstructedwithintimateinteractionsunderacanopyofavillagecelebration.NoticethesimilarityinthecentralrunningfiguresinThePeasantDanceandinGoldberg’searliercitymontagefrom1911.

TheWeeklyMeetingoftheTuesdayLadies’Club(March12,1918)isdifferentfromhistwopreviousdrawingsasthefiguresarealloccupyingthesametimeandspace,butseparatedbyintimateconversationssimilartoBruegel’s,ThePeasantDance.

LeonardodiVincic.1490

warmachinesc.1500

AnnibaleCarraccic.1590

NoticingRube’sfrequentuseofcaricature,Iwilltakethisopportunitytobrieflysegueintotheoriginsofcaricature.Leonardoisoftencitedasanearlypractitionerofcaricature,butit’sAnnibaleCarraccialongwithhisbrothersAgostinoandLudovicowhoaregenerallycreditedwithinventingthecaricatureinthe1590’s.ThewordcomesfromtheItaliancaricare,whichmeanstoexaggerateordistortelementsorphysicalcharacteristics.RememberLeonardolikeGoldbergwasatirelessobserver,inventorandengineer,whowasalsoleft-handed.

Inthiscartoonfrom1913(BreakingEven:TheOnlyWayMenCanGetSquarewiththeWomanWhoKeepsonHerHatintheTheater),notehowthefollyofthehatstyleismatchedwiththecharactertocompletetheparody.

HereGoldbergreliesonconventionaloranalmost“every-person”likenessesandappropriatecostumewithcorrespondingnamesthatbringthecharactertolife.

InIfYouWanttoHoldYourGirlDon’tCompetewithaRestaurantOrchestra(circa1918)onecanalmostheartheracketcausedbyaclusterof“musicians”obviouslytryingtoohard.Thisagitationisachievedwithanassortmentofflatblackwrithingcontortionistspositionedatarrestingdiagonalspittedagainstthestartlingpatternsoftheisolatedcouple.Theresultisaprecariouscompositionalbalanceestablishingthedrawing’svisualtension.

Goldbergisamasteratgentlymovingtheviewerinameanderingroutein,throughandaroundtheroomenjoyingthepatterns,texturesandidiosyncrasiesaswellasshamefullylisteninginonprivateconversations.

AninterestingcomparisoncanbemadebetweenthewayinwhichGoldbergconstructsanarrativeandthatofthecontemporarystripinthefollowingslide.InGoldberg’sTheWeeklyMeetingoftheTuesdayLadies’Club(1917)theviewermovesinaserpentinemannerthroughoutthecompositionexperiencingthespacevolumetricallyandintime.Inthefollowingstriptheviewertravelslaterallyinashallowspace.NoticethefemalecharacteronthefarrightwithastrongresemblancetoOliveOyl,whowillmakeherdebuttwoyearslaterin“TheThimbleTheater”comicstripbyE.C.Segar.

BaronBeanbyGeorgeHerriman1917

“Myideaofanartistwasafellowwholoafedthegreaterpartofthetime,and,whenhehadnothingbettertodo,hungaroundstreetcornersandaskedpeopleforquarters.”MaxGoldberg,Rube’sFather

OnArtistsandModernArt

MaxGoldbergwasthePoliceandFireCommissionerofSanFrancisco.

TheArmoryShowof1913setthestageforNewYorkCitytobecometheartcenteroftheworlddecadeslater.Itwasatimeteemingwithactivityandrapidchangeculturally,sociallyandeconomically.Forsomeonewithlittleformaltraining,Goldbergunderstoodrulesofcomposition,thedynamicsofspace,impliedmotion,theillusionofweightandthedescriptivepowerofline.Inthetopdrawingnoticetheslightimbalancethattiltseversoslightlygivingavisualtensiontothecomposition.Heingeniouslyplaystexturesandpatternsagainstopenwhitespacestoachievethisimbalance.Theviewerisgivenavantagepointfromanimaginarymezzaninenotonlytohaveabetterviewoftheroom,butalsotounderscoreavisualanxiety.Thelowerpanelcontinuesthestereotypicalandoftenmisunderstoodideasaboutartandartists,whichcontinuetoday.

MarcelDuchampNudeDescendingaStaircase,No.2Oiloncanvas577/8x351/8”1912Collection:PhiladelphiaMuseumofArt

J.F.Griswold’sTheRudeDescendingAStaircase(RushHourAtTheSubway)NewYorkEveningSunMarch20,1913

NewYorkTimescriticdescribedMarcelDuchamp’sNudeDescendingaStaircase,No.2as“anexplosioninashinglesfactory”

Self-explanatory

Iamparticularlyfondofthedrawingsfromthisperiod(1919)dueinparttohowwellcraftedtheyare.Goldberg’sarticulatedlinewithhissuggestionoftexturesandsurfaceformaharmoniousinterplayofpatternsthataidinsupportingthenarrative.LikeIngres,Goldbergcontrolswhen,whereandhowlongtolook.Bothartistsachievethismanipulationbyemployingdifferentmarkingsystemswithinthesamedrawing.Noticebothwomenareinfinerdetail,morenaturalistic,whilethemenaresimplycartoons.Lookingintothecrowd,themalecaricatureslosedetailastheyfadeintothedistance.

TheArchitectCharles-VictorFamin JeanAugusteDominiqueIngres1836Collection:MetropolitanMuseumofArt

Ingresfamouslymanipulatestheviewerbyemployingthreeseparatemarkingsystemsthatmovetheviewerthroughoutthecompositionalwaysreturningtheviewertothesubject’seyes.

Sharedcommentaryonapopularandoftenmisleadingunderstandingofnon-representational“Modern”art.

ThevisualinfluenceofstageandscreeninbothcompositionandnarrativeisobviousinGoldberg’swork.ThisstripisinterestingbecauseoftheuniquevantagechoicesemployedineachframewhileGoldbergpokesfunatthelatestculturaltechnology.

Thevaryingheightsofthemenwalkinginthetunnelcreateanundulatingmotionthatbothmoveone’seyethroughthetunnelwhilereferencingthetypeofcreaturethatinhabitssuchpassageways.Thetwofoldnatureofhiscommentaryisunderscoredbythetunnel’sdoubleimageasbothanunderpassanda“smile”.

Thisstripfromthemid-1920’sisagoodexampleofhowGoldberg’splacementofpatternscreateanaccordion-likemovementthroughanarrativenotunlikethoseoccurringinAsianfoldingscreenpaintings.Goldberg’scompositionalshiftsmovingthetwofiguresclosertotheaudiencethusendingthesceneor"findingyourlight”alsoreferenceshisstagingknowledgeofVaudeville,whereheperformedbetween1910-1915,playingtheLyricTheateronitsopeningnightinJanuary,1914.

REPLAY:Ideasrevisited

“Astronomyisbecomingpopular” 1925

“Whatareyougoingtodowithit?”c.1915

Inthetopdrawingthenightskyappearsmorelikeastagepropthantheinfinitespaceillusionthatheachievesbelow.Thecomplexityifnotthesophisticationofthetelescopeimagehasalsodevelopedinthedecadesincethefirststrip.

ProfessorButts:InventionDrawing(ScreenDoor)1931

ProfessorButts:InventionDrawing(ScreenDoor)1950’s

Inthetwentyyearsbetweenthesetwoconcepts,Goldberghasmovedfrompentobrushwithmoresuggestionandlessarticulation;aparingdowntotheessentials.

Sketches,thehandbehindthemanAnexplorationofGoldberg’sprocessandideadevelopment

Acoupleofpreliminarydrawingsthatillustratehisprocess.Collection:BancroftLibraryatUCBerkeley,circa1918.

Recto Verso

Inthe15thand16thcenturiesdoublesideddrawingswerecommonplaceduetothescarcityandexpenseofpaper.SowhydidGoldbergdrawonbothsidesinthemid20Thcentury?Wasitduetocapturingthemomentorperhapswantingtorecordanideaonpaperbeforeitvanished,orcouldithavebeenvisualshorthandtoreferbacktolaterwhenhehadmoretimetodeveloptheidea?

Collection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

StudiesfortheLibyanSibyl(recto)ca1510-11 StudiesfortheLibyanSibylandasmallSketchforaSeatedFigure(verso) Redchalk softblackchalk,orlessprobablycharcoal Collection:MetropolitanMuseumofArt

MichelangelodiLodovicoBuonarrotiSimoni1475-1564

ThefollowingstudiesarefromthecollectionattheWilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt,thoughnotdatedtheyareprobablyfromthe1960’s.TheydohowevergiveusanopportunitytoviewmanyareasofinterestonwhichRubeGoldberghadcontinuedtofocussincethebeginningsports,impliedmotion,plasticityandcaricature.

Studiescirca1960’sCollection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

Recto Verso

Besidesbeingthemostdifficultpartsofthehumananatomytodraw,handsandfeetareoneofthemoststudiedbodypartssincetheRenaissance.Artistswhocouldnotmastertheseextremitieseitherleftthemoutofthecompositionorplacedtheminshadow.Lookthenexttimeduringamuseumvisit.

Collection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

Thesestudiesgiveoneasenseofhowhisideasdevelopedspecificallyhisinventions.Collection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

Thoughtsonpaper.Collection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

Anideastartsasagesture,whichisactiondocumentedintime.

Collection:WilliamsCollegeMuseumofArt

From1954onthereisachangeinhisprocessandstyle,whichismorereflectiveoftheperiod.Hislineisfluidcomingfromabrushinsteadofapen,calligraphicinsteadofarticulated.

InclosingIwillleaveyouwithRube’sdesignforthe“Reuben”giventotheOutstandingCartoonistoftheYearalongwithPeter’sMcPlaster’scontributionfromthe1920’s,showingagainhowGoldbergoftenrevisitedearlierideas.InadditiontothemanycomparisonsofRubeGoldbergwithmasterslikeBosch,LeonardoandIngres,onecaneasilyseehimasthevisualequivalenttosuchAmericanhumoristsasMarkTwainandWillRogersasheparallelsthenarrativetraditionsofAmericanartists,ThomasHartBentonandGrantWood.IhopethispresentationhasbroadenedyourunderstandingofTheArtofRubeGoldbergandinsodoingwillenrichyourexhibitionexperience.