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Jasper Johns,
Perilous Night, 1982, encaustic on canvas with objects,
National Gallery of Art, Washington, Robert and Jane Meyerhoff
Collection 1995.79.1 |
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Visual
Archaeology
Perilous
Night is dark and dense. Obscure images, mysteriously juxtaposed,
act almost as an armor, preventing the viewer from penetrating the painting's
meaning.
The
painting's structure, however, is clear. It is a diptych, made up of two
halves. On the left is a single dark image. On the right are a number
of disjointed but clearly defined images and objects. What do they signify
and what is the relationship between the two sides?
 
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