Marcel Broodthaers

Pot of Mussels

1968

Mussel shells with tinted resin in painted pot

Not on view

The mussel shell is a common material in the artist's work. Here, he filled a shallow pan past its brim with the shells and paired them with an equally heaping bowl of painted wooden french fries. This combination is a witty nod to Broodthaers's heritage, as moules-frites (mussels and french fries) is generally considered the Belgian national dish. Moreover, in French, la moule (a mussel) is close in pronunciation and spelling to le moule (a cast or mold), a traditional device used by sculptors. By incorporating the shells into his sculpture, Broodthaers transformed a verbal pun into a visual one.

Gallery label from

2012.

Medium Mussel shells with tinted resin in painted pot
Dimensions 5 7/8 x 13 x 9 13/16" (15 x 33 x 25 cm)
Credit Partial gift of the Daled Collection and partial purchase through the generosity of Maja Oeri and Hans Bodenmann, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, Agnes Gund, Marlene Hess and James D. Zirin, Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis, and Jerry I. Speyer and Katherine G. Farley
Object number 606.2011
Department Painting & Sculpture

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Marcel Broodthaers

Marcel Broodthaers

Belgian, 1924–1976 95 works online

Over the course of 12 extraordinary years, Marcel Broodthaers developed a distinctive body of work characterized by irreverence, wit, introspection, and skepticism.

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