Erin,

As an conservator I appreciate that you are asking about this!

Almost all sculptures that I have have encountered, even by contemporary artists, usually have the year and then the number in the series imprinted or cast into the base. I believe I once worked on a piece by Lichetnstein had a copper alloy plate attached. Such a notation looks like this:  1971/23

I think that there are advantages to the series approach that collectors and galleries like, but I also appreciate your idea about having a year of creation too.

But note how the two notations might be confused - so that may require your including the full year to make the reference clear.

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Senior Conservator
Los Angeles, CA



On Thu, May 21, 2009 at 5:17 PM, Erin Collings <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Hello,

I'm an artist who uses molds and casts, and the works often wind up in museums, and I frequently find myself debating with their archivists on how to date the works.

I wonder if anyone knows the correct way to date a cast that was taken from a mold, if there is a difference in the years?

I was once taught that the way to note the date of a photographic print which was printed in a year that followed the creation of the negative, one uses a dash, negative date/print date:

i.e.:  1955/63 would mean the negative was created in 1955, the print in 1963.

I would assume that the same logic would apply to a cast that was taken from a mold, mold/cast:

i.e.: 1978/83 would mean the mold was created in 1978, the cast in 1983.

Are there consistent rules that have been established for such notation? Are the rules different in Europe vs. the U.S. ?

Any wisdom appreciated!

Erin







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