Ray Johnson Mail Art to Arthur C. Danto

Ray Johnson Mail Art to Arthur C. Danto

Correspondence

The mail art pioneer Ray Johnson (1927-1995) was known for his correspondences with various members of the contemporary art world. This letter sent from Johnson to the famed art historian Arthur C. Danto presents an interesting argument about what constitutes an art object. On the surface, Johnson alludes to an article that Danto wrote for the March 9, 1985 edition of The Nation (De Kooning’s Three-Seater) about a toilet seat painted by the Abstract Expressionist painter Willem De Kooning that has ended up in the possession of Long Island auctioneer Charles Vanderveer III. In the article, Danto argues that this mundane object should not be considered a “De Kooning” for several reasons: the object lacks the intention of a Duchamp readymade and it is not a continuation or a precursor of De Kooning’s oeuvre. While not art, it is perhaps an artifact of a well-known artist. Johnson’s interest in this stems from an article he wrote for Art in America where he asks several prominent artists including De Kooning to remember their favorite childhood objects. In De Kooning’s case it was a small cart that he makes a simple sketch of for Johnson’s article. In this letter to Danto, Johnson is asking if “The Cart”, unlike the toilet seat, could be considered art. I would argue that in a surreptitious way, Johnson is asserting that this actual letter to Danto, the De Kooning toilet seat and sketch are similar in their trivial natures as well as their associations with artists and that all three could be categorized within an art context that Johnson writes is “completely in an area by itself”.
The letter is dated March 24, 1985 with a return address of Ray Johnson 44 West 7 Street Locust Valley New York 11560 rubberstamped at the top. Johnson mentions Carolyn Marx, a contemporary art specialist bringing the Danto article to Johnson’s attention. Running vertically down the left side of this letter is a sketch of a black “paper snake” with “Ray Johnson” written out in white letters across the drawing. This particular image is a reoccurring one in Johnson’s letters.

Ray Johnson

http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/items/detail/ray-johnson-letter-to-arthur-coleman-danto-12770

Archives of American Art

1985

Scott Rollins

Ray Johnson Estate, New York.

https://www.thenation.com/article/correspondance-school-art/

Illustrated Letter

English

Mail Art

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