A
tall pile of mussel shells is held together with green-tinted resin, evoking the
sea. The shell seem to be surging upwards in an explosion of vitality. The
images uses a pun on the words la moule ('the mussel') and le moule
('the mould'). The work is intended as a metaphor for the artist's home country
of Belgium, where mussels are a national dish; it is also a satire on the
Belgian bourgeoisie. It is probably Broodthaer's most famous image. The artist's
sculpture can be categorized as Conceptual Art, in that the ideas behind his
works are more important than the words themselves. Broodthaers was also greatly
influenced by the compatriot, the Surrealist painter René Magritte. Like
Magritte, he often delights incongruous juxtapositions and the creation on
visual paradoxes through the combination of words, everyday objects and printed
material.
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A
tall pile of mussel shells is held together with green-tinted resin, evoking the
sea. The shell seem to be surging upwards in an explosion of vitality. The
images uses a pun on the words la moule ('the mussel') and le moule
('the mould'). The work is intended as a metaphor for the artist's home country
of Belgium, where mussels are a national dish; it is also a satire on the
Belgian bourgeoisie. It is probably Broodthaer's most famous image. The artist's
sculpture can be categorized as Conceptual Art, in that the ideas behind his
works are more important than the words themselves. Broodthaers was also greatly
influenced by the compatriot, the Surrealist painter René Magritte. Like
Magritte, he often delights incongruous juxtapositions and the creation on
visual paradoxes through the combination of words, everyday objects and printed
material.