Robert Rauschenberg – Autobiography

Robert Rauschenberg’s Autobiography from 1968 is a triptych that summarises the artist’s life through a series of visual clues. The work is divided into three sections. The first section consists of an X-ray of the artist’s skeleton combined with his horoscope, a wheel and an umbrella. The second section contains a photograph from his childhood, surrounded by a spiral text summarising important events in his life. The third section shows a silhouette of New York alongside places of personal significance to Rauschenberg: a nautical chart of the Gulf of Mexico near his hometown of Port Arthur in Texas, and a photograph of water towers visible from his New York studio. Also included is an image of the artist on roller skates from the performance Pelican (1963).

The circular forms of Autobiography are strongly linked to one of his most famous combines, Monogram (1955–59), in which a goat in a car tyre is placed on a painted platform filled with references and symbols. In Autobiography (1968), the circular form is repeated in each rectangular part of the triptych: the horoscope, the spiral with biographical text and the parachute on his back. In each circular form, the artist is found: through his skeleton, the childhood photograph and the portrait on roller skates.

Autobiography (1968) was the first work of art to be printed in large, billboard format, and it was produced in an edition of 2,000 copies by Broadside Art Inc. with a unit price of $150. The printer included instructions that the work could be installed either vertically or horizontally, reinforcing Rauschenberg’s intention to make the art more flexible and adaptable.

Several elements of Autobiography (1968) were reused or integrated from earlier works created by Rauschenberg, such as Booster (1967), Self Portrait (for The New Yorker profile) (1964), Pelican (1963) and Autobiography (1960). The method of recycling works, symbols, forms and motifs was something Rauschenberg explored continuously throughout his career. Autobiography (1968) invites the viewer to delve into these layers and clues, to discover connections to earlier works and to reflect on the artistic process, which Rauschenberg constantly sought to redefine.

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