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  1. Collection/
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  3. I.O.U.
I.O.U., Kay Rosen, 1989
KKay RosenAmerican

I.O.U.

1989 · Painting

May one see it?

Not receiving at present

Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

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

Checked
3 days ago
In this state since
Aug 19, 2026
Source
The museum
On the mapMuseum page

About the painting

Kay Rosen uses words and letters as a means of examining the ways in which language structures knowledge— particularly in terms of awareness of self and place. Generally concerned with formal configurations of words and letters and with the gamesmanship involved in the deconstruction and reconstruction of language, her exceedingly clever, diagrammatic works consist of common phrases, poetic verse, and word plays based on synonyms and homonyms. These black-and-white paintings form a cornerstone of Rosen’s work from the late 1980s onward, reflecting an early and ongoing interest in themes such as systems and symmetry, the structure of individual letterforms, comparative structures of words, and humor.

Art Institute of Chicago · CC BY 4.0

Particulars

Accession number
2014.7

In the catalog

PaintingsAmerican paintingContemporary art20th centuryUnited States

Sources

  • Art Institute of Chicago
  • Image: Art Institute of Chicago — © the artist or rights holder

More by Kay Rosen

All works
Why Not, Kay Rosen, 1989

Why Not

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Two Eiffels, Kay Rosen, 1989

Two Eiffels

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Hug Hugh Ugh, Kay Rosen, 1989

Hug Hugh Ugh

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Sic [Sic] Sick, Kay Rosen, 1989

Sic [Sic] Sick

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

The River, Kay Rosen, 1989

The River

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Torsos Rot, Kay Rosen, 1989

Torsos Rot

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

4-1/2 Oxen, Kay Rosen, 1989

4-1/2 Oxen

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Tree Lined Street, Kay Rosen, 1989

Tree Lined Street

1989 · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Neighbors at Art Institute of Chicago

Museum page
The Bedroom, Vincent van Gogh, 1889

Vincent van Gogh

The Bedroom, 1889

A Sunday on La Grande Jatte — 1884, Georges Seurat, 1884–86, border added 1888–89

Georges Seurat

A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, 1884–86, border added 1888–89

Paris Street; Rainy Day, Gustave Caillebotte, 1877

Gustave Caillebotte

Paris Street; Rainy Day, 1877

Two Sisters (On the Terrace), Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1881

Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Two Sisters (On the Terrace), 1881

The Basket of Apples, Paul Cézanne, c. 1893

Paul Cézanne

The Basket of Apples, c. 1893

Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer), Claude Monet, 1890–91

Claude Monet

Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer), 1890–91

American Gothic, Grant Wood, 1930

Grant Wood

American Gothic, 1930

Nighthawks, Edward Hopper, 1942

Edward Hopper

Nighthawks, 1942