R3 (where R=Ryoanji) OK to print
1983
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
drypoint in black on J. Whatman paper
Dimensions
image: 17.8 x 54.3 cm (7 x 21 3/8 in.) sheet: 23.5 x 59.7 cm (9 1/4 x 23 1/2 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Kathan Brown
Accession Number
1996.93.37
Art Historical Context
John Cage's *R3 (where R=Ryoanji) OK to print* (1983) is a captivating drypoint print that bridges the worlds of experimental music and visual art., renowned for his avant-garde like *4'33"*, turned to printmaking in his later years, collaborating with workshops like Crown Point Press (reflected in the gift from Kathan). This work belongs to his "R" series, directly inspired by the iconic Zen garden at Ryoanji Temple Kyoto, Japan—a minimalist landscape of 15 stones amid raked gravel that invites contemplation and impermanence. Executed in black ink on fine J. Whatman paper, the drypoint techn...
About the Artist
John Cage
John Cage (1912–1992), born in Los Angeles to inventor John Milton Cage Sr. and journalist Lucretia "Crete" Harvey, an amateur artist, initially explored painting during travels in Europe in 1930 but soon pivoted to music. His early visual pursuits were sparsely documented, yielding no surviving works, as feedback favored his compositions. He married artist Xenia Andreyevna Kashevaroff, a bookbind...