The first work displayed in Mel Bochner’s exhibition ‘Strong Language’ at the Jewish Museum, New York, sets the scene for much of what follows. Self/Portrait (2013) comprises a series of synonyms for the terms ‘self’ and ‘portrait’. On the left hand side of the canvas is a column of 18 painted words that range from ‘self’ to ‘egohood’ to ‘being’; on the right hand side is a symmetrical column of words that range from ‘portrait’ to ‘caricature’ to ‘life study’.
The work is deceptive in its simplicity. Painted in white against a black background, the words can be read as two lists. But when the work is taken as a painting, the words are abstracted and become things to be looked at. As a self-portrait, moreover, the work offers a playful commentary on the insufficiencies of language. Something as seemingly simple to define as your own self slips away in an avalanche of words...