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Collections

Edward Kienholz
Back Seat Dodge '381964

Not on view
Mixed-media sculpture of a vintage rounded sedan covered in slate-blue coating, displayed on artificial turf, with headlights lit, driver's door open revealing a figure's legs inside, and glass bottles scattered nearby
Large-scale sculptural installation of a 1930s-style two-door sedan, painted matte blue with visible brushwork, displayed on artificial grass. The front end curves and sags toward the ground, with chrome headlamp details intact.
Sculptural installation: rear three-quarter view of a worn, matte blue vintage automobile body, wheelless and resting on a rectangular patch of artificial grass. Illuminated red taillights glow at the bumper, which bears a yellow license plate reading "C-692 EVERYWHERE USA." A chrome bumper and winged hood ornament are visible; small bottles lie scattered on the grass nearby.
Mixed-media sculptural installation of a weathered blue vintage automobile with its door open, illuminated headlights, resting low on a grass surface; interior contains soft, draped fabric forms, with scattered bottles on the ground nearby.
Color photograph of a weathered blue 1930s–40s automobile on a grass surface against a sunset gradient sky, rear door open to reveal a figure in white lace clothing reclining inside, headlights illuminated, scattered bottles on the ground nearby.
Mixed-media installation featuring a rusted, weathered blue automobile with the driver's door open, interior filled with a human figure constructed from chicken wire and painted plaster, slumped across the front seat; scattered bottles on artificial grass below.
Mixed-media sculptural installation featuring a reclining human figure constructed from wire mesh and found materials, posed inside a deteriorating vintage automobile interior surrounded by bottles and assorted debris, in dusty earth tones.
Photograph of a large figurative sculpture in progress, showing the lower legs and feet in worn leather shoes, constructed over a wire mesh armature with a papier-mâché or plaster surface, resting on a dusty studio floor surrounded by tools and materials.
Mixed-media sculpture resembling a vehicle interior viewed through wire mesh, with blue foam-covered exterior featuring hexagonal texture, enclosing wrapped forms and elongated figured elements in warm tones.
Mixed-media sculptural installation featuring a life-sized human figure constructed from wire mesh, burlap, and found materials, slumped inside an aged blue vehicle interior, with visible cigarettes, bottles, and worn shoes on the floor.
Artist or Maker
Edward Kienholz
United States, Washington, active Indiana, Hope, and California, Los Angeles, 1927-1994
Title
Back Seat Dodge '38
Place Made
United States
Date Made
1964
Medium
Paint, fiberglass and flock, 1938 Dodge, recorded music, and player, chicken wire, beer bottles, artificial grass, and cast plaster figures.
Dimensions
66 x 120 x 156 in. (167.64 x 304.8 x 396.24 cm); Current footprint: 120 x 145 in. (304.8 x 368.3cm)
Credit Line
Purchased with funds provided by the Art Museum Council Fund
Accession Number
M.81.248a-f
Classification
Time Based Media
Collecting Area
Modern Art
Selected Bibliography
  • Edward Kienholz. Zurich: Kunsthaus Zurich; London: Institute of Contemporary Arts, 1971.
  • Thwaites, John Anthony. "Kienholz and Realism." Art and Artists 8, no.6 (1973): 22-27.