Ale Cans

1964 · Print · 35.88 × 27.94 cm

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Not receiving at present

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Minneapolis, United States

It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.

Checked: 4 hours ago
In this state since: Sep 25, 2026
Source: The museum's own collection data

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About the work

A prolific and innovative printmaker, Jasper Johns frequently explored themes and subjects in more than one medium. In this color lithograph of 1964, Johns presents a two-dimensional portrayal of his cast bronze sculture of two Ballantine ale cans paintied to look like actiual beer cans.

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Johns regulalry chose everyday objects and standardized images as subjects for his art. He depicted numbers, letters, flags, maps, and targets in simple, straightforward compositions. This approach allowed Johns to effectively neutralize his subjects and eliminate any suggestion of narrative content, forcing the viewer to examine the surface, texture, shading, and color of his artworks, that is, as ink on paper, paint on canvas, or cast bronze. For Johns, the artistic process was an integral aspect of the work of art itself. By deemphasizing the hand of the artist, his method also represented an unequivocal repudiation of the individualized self-expression and emotional intensity of the Abstract Expressionists.

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Particulars

Accession number: P.72.55

In the catalog

United States

Sources

Minneapolis Institute of Art: the museum's own open data · fetched 6 days ago
Image: Minneapolis Institute of Art — Art © Jasper Johns / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY

Meanwhile, in the life of Jasper Johns

The whole life

spring 1963
Co-founds an arts foundation with John Cage
In spring 1963 Johns and John Cage co-founded the Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts, now the Foundation for Contemporary Arts, to raise funds in the performance field.
28 June 1964 – 6 October 1964
Exhibition: Documenta III
1965
Affair with Susan Sontag
Johns has primarily had relationships with men, but in 1965 he had an affair with the writer Susan Sontag.

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