House
1994
book, black-and-white photograph, colour photograph
29 x 38 x 1 cm
currently not on display
acquired in 1994
inventory number 2130
The Van Abbemuseum Collection consists of over 3600 artworks. We publish texts and images on an ongoing basis, but this record is currently in the process of being documented.
If you need specific information on this work or artist, remember that the Van Abbemuseum Library is at your disposal, or feel free to write to the library.
Description
This book contains photos of Rachel Whiteread’s eponymous 'House' project from 1993. Although the title and form refer to a house, the work 'House' did not operate as one. The sculpture is a cast of the interior of a decrepit Victorian terraced house set for demolition in London’s impoverished East End. The sculpture thus looks like the original house, but is in fact an imprint of the empty space within it. The translation of a working class house to a work of contemporary art resonated in the neighbourhood. The artists notes: ‘I knew of course, while I was making 'House', it had a political dimension. You can’t make a cast of a house in a poor area of London and not be political.
