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I Keep Foolin’ Around

William T. Wiley

Unframed size: Not available

$5,000.00

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About the work

You will note the central motif of a square comprised of four squares. You may recall that symbol from other works; it is a recurring symbol for the artist. Wiley’s inspiration for this symbol was the chessboard, which so fascinated Surrealist Marcel Duchamp and ties Wiley to the Surrealists–as if simply viewing his work did not make that plain.

While the black and white square appears to have no particular purpose in this picture, it has been suggested that Wiley incorporated it in this picture as a simple resting place for the eye, a void within an otherwise complicated composition.

This work has also been titled, “I Keep Fooling Around Hopin’ I won’t Have to Start Here”.

Examples of this print are held in the collections of the National Gallery of Art, the UC Berkely Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive, the Fine Art Museums of San Francisco, and others.

The printer of this work warrants special mention. This etching was printed by Timothy Berry, proprietor of Teaberry Press in San Francisco. Berry developed the Intaglio Publishing Program at Landfall Press in Chicago and, a year later, he formed Teaberry Press–America’s first one-person intaglio workshop. This work led to him being recognized as one of the founders of the etching revival in post-WWII America, and marked the start of a long career teaching at the San Francisco Art Institute and at UC Davis, as well painting his own art.

This print is framed in an oiled and waxed solid Walnut frame behind 99% UV-blocking Plexiglas using strictly conservation-grade materials. It bears indicia of its provenance en verso.