An Open-Ended Question: H. C. Westermann’s Untitled, 1962

Abstract

A three-dimensional, polychrome realization of a question mark, H. C. Westermann’s Untitled remains something of a question itself (fig. 1). Without the verbiage normally preceding any such sign it is impossible to know what, if anything, is being asked. Perhaps the riddle posed has more to do with viewer projection than the artist’s own intendedmeaning, although it is my contention that built into the content of the sculpture was a faith that such uncertainty would attract attention. Certainly this was true in the months of its initial reception, when Untitled elicited divergent responses and frequent reproduction. Clearly it met the needs of critics in their desire to engage with emergent practices in United