Target
The target has been a central motif in Johns’s work since 1955. He has depicted this deceptively simple image in a range of different media, translating between contexts and materials. Johns’s approach prioritizes process and experimentation over definitive conclusions. As the artist famously wrote in a notebook in 1963–64: "Take an object / Do something to it / Do something else to it."
This work, published in connection with the exhibition catalogue Technics and Creativity, presents the outlines of five concentric circles accompanied by three dried watercolor cakes in the primary colors and a small red paintbrush. Johns wryly makes reference to the ubiquity and banality of targets, as well as to the seeming simplicity of his own celebrated creations. Below the work's stamped title and date is the artist’s signature followed by the word "AND" with a blank line, anticipating the addition of another name, that of Johns’s eventual collaborator. Target thus generates a paradox: the work can only be "completed" by someone else, but to do so would perhaps also destroy the integrity of the artwork. Therefore the work must remain in a perpetually unfinished state.
This work, published in connection with the exhibition catalogue Technics and Creativity, presents the outlines of five concentric circles accompanied by three dried watercolor cakes in the primary colors and a small red paintbrush. Johns wryly makes reference to the ubiquity and banality of targets, as well as to the seeming simplicity of his own celebrated creations. Below the work's stamped title and date is the artist’s signature followed by the word "AND" with a blank line, anticipating the addition of another name, that of Johns’s eventual collaborator. Target thus generates a paradox: the work can only be "completed" by someone else, but to do so would perhaps also destroy the integrity of the artwork. Therefore the work must remain in a perpetually unfinished state.
Artwork Details
- Title: Target
- Artist: Jasper Johns (American, born Augusta, Georgia, 1930)
- Publisher: Gemini G.E.L.
- Publisher: Museum of Modern Art, New York
- Date: 1971
- Medium: Offset lithograph with collage, in white plastic book case with the exhibition catalogue "Technics And Creativity"
- Dimensions: Sheet: 10 3/8 × 8 3/8 in. (26.4 × 21.3 cm)
Case: 1 1/2 × 10 5/8 × 8 5/8 in. (3.8 × 27 × 21.9 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Bequest of William S. Lieberman, 2005
- Object Number: 2007.49.691
- Rights and Reproduction: Art © Jasper Johns and Gemini G.E.L. / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Jasper Johns
Universal Limited Art Editions
1964
Jasper Johns
Gemini G.E.L.
1969
Multiple artists/makers
1967
Multiple artists/makers
1967, published in 1st Etchings, 2nd State 1967–69
Jasper Johns
Universal Limited Art Editions
1967–68
Related Content
Publications
Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.