Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
October 9–November 15, 2008
London

Monika Sprüth and Philomene Magers are delighted to announce SPECTRUM RIPPER, the first UK solo exhibition of Los Angeles-based artist Sterling Ruby. Ruby speaks for a generation of artists who seek to re-inscribe the experience of physicality, sexuality and death into minimalist art. SPECTRUM RIPPER is the last of a three-part Ripper trilogy, which began in September 2008 with ZEN RIPPER at Galleria Emi Fontana in Milan and GRID RIPPER at GAMeC in Bergamo. Based on US vernacular, the RIPPER series is concerned with the deconstruction (“ripping”) of modernist tropes, such as “the grid” as the ultimate harmonious geometry, “Zen” as a religion-cum-interior design movement, and the color spectrum as a trope for the metaphysical.

In the main gallery space Ruby has installed a pair of large paintings and two sculptures made from Formica and covered with industrial spray paint. The gritty urban aesthetic of these materials contrasts with the minimalist form of the works. The combination of contemporary street graffiti and modern sculpture allows Ruby to question the canonical position and alleged lack of subject matter of American minimalist art, as espoused by Donald Judd. Fascinated by prison architecture and banal urban design, such as the humble bus stop, Ruby argues that minimalism has in fact always been inherently political. It was in fact Ruby’s move from Chicago to LA in 2003 that marked a shift in his practice: Ruby made the link between the demarcation of an art movement and the tags of LA’s street gangs. As a mode of territorialization street graffiti became an important inspiration for Ruby.

 

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In SPECTRUM RIPPER Ruby seeks to undermine the dogma of "pure" minimalism, but he also challenges the idea of the color spectrum as a symbol of enlightenment or heightened state of consciousness. By infusing black into purity of the color spectrum, Ruby contaminates the romantic notion of the spectrum as "innate." Pale yellow, turbid pink, and acid green become the means by which Ruby erodes the geometric rigidity of the sharp-edged sculptures. Ruby’s work is a metaphor for the oppositional relationship between the "conditioned" and the "innate." This exhibition is the result of the artist’s struggle to negotiate between these two states of existence.

Once described as treading a fine line between "decoration and tragedy," Ruby’s art explores death and our fear of it. Profoundly influenced by Ernest Becker’s 1973 book The Denial of Death, Ruby constantly seeks to break our allegedly natural desire for heroic beauty and its sculptural symbol, the monolith. In this respect, the two sculptures in the gallery can be interpreted as fallen symbols of male power. By bringing down the monolith, Ruby not only castrates the phallic meaning often associated with this form, but he also quotes Mark Rothko’s Menil Chapel by turning the erect sculpture into a functional device: the bench. Installed two years before the publication of The Denial of Death Rothko’s Chapel sought to enable a spiritual experience, which Becker considered to be at a crisis point at the time. While Ruby seeks to explore Rothko’s legacy and the theoretical implications of Becker on modern society, his art is also full of mischief and laissez-faire, which makes it subtle and highly engaging.

 

Installation Views
Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Details
Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SPECTRUM RIPPER
Installation view, Sprüth Magers, London, October 9–November 15, 2008

Details
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1 of 7
Exhibited Works
Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
SP51, 2008

Sterling Ruby
SP51, 2008
Paint/canvas
254 × 365.8 × 5.1 cm
100 × 144 × 2 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Inertia 1, 2008

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Inertia 1, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
95.9 × 127 cm
37 3/4 × 50 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Orange, 2008

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Orange, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
56 × 75.5 cm
22 × 29 3/4 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Knife, 2008

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Knife, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
56.5 × 76 cm
22 1/4 × 30 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Solo Drop, 2008

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Solo Drop, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
56 × 75.5 cm
22 × 29 3/4 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Inertia 2, 2008

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Inertia 2, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
96 × 127 cm
37 3/4 × 50 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
The Gross Clinic (Blue), 2008

Sterling Ruby
The Gross Clinic (Blue), 2008
Ceramic/glaze
Base: formica
ceramic + plinth, 2 parts in total
61 × 35.6 × 40.6 cm (ceramic)
101.6 × 61 × 76.2 cm (plinth)
24 × 14 × 16 inches (ceramic)
40 × 24 × 30 inches (plinth)

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
Half Aptitude 1, 2008

Sterling Ruby
Half Aptitude 1, 2008
Ceramic/glaze
Base: formica
40.5 × 63.5 × 60 cm (ceramic)
91.5 × 86.5 × 86.5 cm (plinth)
16 × 25 × 24 inches (ceramic)
36 × 34 × 34 inches (plinth)

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London
Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper, 2008

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper, 2008
Paint/canvas; Formica/spraypaint
4 parts
243.8 × 213.4 × 5.1 cm
243.8 × 213.4 × 5.1 cm
76 × 76 × 366 cm
61 × 61 × 457 cm
96 × 84 × 2 inches
96 × 84 × 2 inches
30 × 30 × 144 inches
24 × 24 × 180 inches

Details
Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
SP51, 2008
Paint/canvas
254 × 365.8 × 5.1 cm
100 × 144 × 2 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Inertia 1, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
95.9 × 127 cm
37 3/4 × 50 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Orange, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
56 × 75.5 cm
22 × 29 3/4 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Knife, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
56.5 × 76 cm
22 1/4 × 30 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Solo Drop, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
56 × 75.5 cm
22 × 29 3/4 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper/Inertia 2, 2008
Collage, pencil and paint on paper
96 × 127 cm
37 3/4 × 50 inches

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
The Gross Clinic (Blue), 2008
Ceramic/glaze
Base: formica
ceramic + plinth, 2 parts in total
61 × 35.6 × 40.6 cm (ceramic)
101.6 × 61 × 76.2 cm (plinth)
24 × 14 × 16 inches (ceramic)
40 × 24 × 30 inches (plinth)

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
Half Aptitude 1, 2008
Ceramic/glaze
Base: formica
40.5 × 63.5 × 60 cm (ceramic)
91.5 × 86.5 × 86.5 cm (plinth)
16 × 25 × 24 inches (ceramic)
36 × 34 × 34 inches (plinth)

Sterling Ruby – SPECTRUM RIPPER – London

Sterling Ruby
Spectrum Ripper, 2008
Paint/canvas; Formica/spraypaint
4 parts
243.8 × 213.4 × 5.1 cm
243.8 × 213.4 × 5.1 cm
76 × 76 × 366 cm
61 × 61 × 457 cm
96 × 84 × 2 inches
96 × 84 × 2 inches
30 × 30 × 144 inches
24 × 24 × 180 inches

Details
icon_fullscreen
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Selected Press

Sterling Ruby at Sprüth Magers
Art in America, review by Anne Reeve, February 24, 2009

Artworker of the week #71: Sterling Ruby
Kultureflash, interview by Emily McMehen, November 13, 2008