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| Haim Steinbach is Professor
of Visual Arts at the University of California, San Diego. After his
1979 and 1980 solo shows at Artists Space and Fashion Moda in New
York, Steinbach's interest in the world of objects made him a significant
figure in the creative discourse of '80s New York. He participated
with Group Material, an artist-run collaborative which exhibited in
stores, apartments, and subways, and also showed his work at the new
galleries in the East Village. By the second half of the decade, Steinbach's
work gained increasing attention in both America and Europe, and was
included in various international shows. By the late '80s Steinbach
was recognized as one of the world's leading contemporary
artists. In 1995 a major survey of Haim Steinbach's work
took place at the Castello di Rivoli Museum of Contemporary Art in
Turin, Italy. Haim Steinbach is one of the major artists of the conceptual art movement. His work involves developing structures and framing devices for the presentation of already existing objects. In this artwork, Steinbach has used familiar domestic items, sleek teakettles and trashcans, and arranged them on a shelf he has had constructed. By placing these items on the shelf, he presents them as items of great importance and desire. In Beep Honk, Toot, #2, Steinbach explores how the meaning of objects changes when they are presented in a museum environment. He is also asking the viewer to consider why they collect and treasure certain items, even simple household items like expensive teakettles and trashcans.  (For Grades 3-5) What items are used in this artwork? Are they items you can find in your home? How are these items different because they are placed in a museum setting? Why did the artist place these items on a shelf? How would this artwork change if the items were simply placed on the floor of the museum? |
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Haim Steinbach United States, born Israel, 1944 Beep, honk, toot, #2 Chrome laminated wood shelf with chrome tea kettles and chrome trash cans, 1989 Museum purchase, International and Contemporary Collectors Fund 2004.9.a-j © Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego |
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