ROBERT GOBER | The Basinless Sink

Gallery Nature Morte, New York
Collection of Jerry and Emily Spiegel, New York (acquired from the above in March 1986)
Thence by descent to the present owner

New York, Gallery Nature Morte, Robert Gober and Kevin Larmon: An Installation, March 1986
Rotterdam, Museum Boymans-van Beuningen; Bern, Kunsthalle, Robert Gober, May - September 1990, p. 62 illustrated 
Basel, Schaulager, Robert Gober. Work 1976-2007, May - October 2007, pp. 130 and 134-135, illustrated in color 

Elisabeth Sussman, The Problem of Primal Scene, Boston 1988, p. 60
Joan Simon, Robert Gober, Paris 1991, p. 17
Jörg-Uwe Albig, "Zu Hause Herrschten die Dämonen der Kindheit," Art Das Kunstmagazin, 1994, p. 64 
Alexander Braun, Robert Gober: Werke von 1976 bis heute: Amerikanische Kunst der Gegenwart im Spannungsfeld einer vernetzten Bildrealität, Nuremberg 2003, p. 98, illustrated
Theodora Vischer, Ed., Robert Gober: Sculptures and Installations 1979 - 2007, Göttingen 2007, pp. 130 and 134-135, illustrated in color 

This work is in excellent condition overall. The surface irregularities throughout are inherent to the work and artist's working process. There is evidence of embedded paint bristles scattered across the surface of the sculpture, again inherent to the artist's working method. The work is intended to be installed with the nail 46 inches from the ground.
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.

“One of my earliest memories is of standing in front of the counter that held our kitchen sink. The top of my head was much lower than the height of the sink, where I would watch my mother for countless hours. I remember thinking that life would be different when I could see for myself the interior of the sink.” Robert Gober

Quietly expressive, The Basinless Sink is a paragon of Robert Gober’s iconic Sinks series, which in its interrogation of the body, sexuality, politics and religion has become emblematic of the themes that defined the artistic inroads of the 1980s in New York. Executed from 1984 to 1986, every sculpture in the group is a permutation on the sinks which populated Gober’s childhood environs, each example becoming increasingly abstracted from their referent as the series progressed. Projecting a staid nobility, the present work is a highly refined exemplar from the latter half of this series, painstakingly handcrafted without a basin to appear flush to the wall. With neither the capability to supply or store water, Gober’s sink is devoid of utility, bringing together the vernacular of the Duchampian readymade with the illogical and ineffable quality of dreams and memories. Gober developed this body of work at the outset of the HIV/AIDs crisis, and the present work is a stoic and forceful visual metaphor to address notions of sanitation, health, abjection, and resilience.