a unique composition of 5 hand-tinted gelatin silver prints, each flush-mounted, in 4 frames, Buhl Collection and Guggenheim Museum exhibition labels on the reverse, 1990-96 (4)

Steven Kasher Gallery, New York, 1997

New York, Guggenheim Museum, Speaking with Hands: Photographs from The Buhl Collection, June - September 2004, and 4 other international venues through 2007 (see Appendix 1)

West Palm Beach, Norton Museum of Art, A Show of Hands: Photographs and Sculpture from the Buhl Collection, January - March 2008

Seoul, South Korea, Daelim Contemporary Art Museum, Speaking with Hands: Photographs from The Buhl Collection (Asian tour), March - May 2009, and 2 other Asian venues through 2011 (see Appendix 1)

Jennifer Blessing, Speaking with Hands: Photographs from The Buhl Collection (Guggenheim Foundation, 2004), pp. 144-45 and 202 (this work)

Coosje van Bruggen, John Baldessari (New York, 1990), pp. 128-129

Although these photographs have not been examined out of their frames, they appear to be in essentially excellent condition. Upon close examination, evidence of the hand-applied tinting with acrylic is visible. The second part of this work consists of 2 photographs (each of which is flush-mounted), joined by linen tape on the reverse of the mounts and framed together.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Pioneering artist John Baldessari abandoned traditional painting in the 1960s to concentrate on a more conceptual, less material-based, approach to making art.  Frequently his excursions led him to photography, and his pieces from the 1960s on typically involve photographs, taken by him or appropriated, arranged in a prescribed sequence.  A seminal piece is his 1971 Throwing Three Balls in the Air to Get a Straight Line (Best of Thirty-Six Attempts), comprising a series of color photographs documenting the experiment explained in the title.  In his teaching position at Cal Arts in the 1970s, Baldessari influenced a generation of contemporary artists that includes David Salle, Mike Kelley, and James Welling (Lot 326), among many others.

Five Male Thoughts (One Frontal) is quintessential Baldessari in its combination of a series of unrelated found images, organized, as the characteristically deadpan titles suggests, according to an empirical categorization.  Baldessari has gathered these images together like a scientist compiling data to illustrate a certain phenomenon.  Baldessari chose images for Five Male Thoughts that show their subjects in postures suggesting contemplation, aggravation, and worry, playfully disregarding the fact that ‘thoughts’ are essentially unphotographable.