Harpoon Rack II 1960

Salvatore Scarpitta made this artwork, Harpoon Rack II, using wax cloth and plaster. The horizontal bands of Scarpitta’s relief sculpture recall minimalist abstraction, but its rough texture and torn surfaces have a rawness that breaks with the sleekness of minimalism. This is typical of post-war Italian art of the mid-20th century. The history of the canvas is one of his primary concerns. Instead of merely painting on canvas, Scarpitta reworked the canvas itself, stretching, tearing, and building it into a sculptural form. The violence done to the canvas material hints at the larger violence of the period. Scarpitta served in the US Navy during World War II, and this experience had a profound impact on his work. His later “bandage” works use wrapped and torn canvas to evoke the wounded bodies of soldiers. Historians can consult military records and cultural histories to understand the social context in which Scarpitta made his art. The meaning of art is always contingent on the social and institutional context in which it is made and displayed.