Dieter Roth

The Lake of Tears (Der Tränensee)

1973

Artist's book of newspaper

Not on view

In spring 1971 Roth began taking out small advertisements in the pages of the Luzerner Stadtanzeiger, a free pennysaver magazine in Lucerne, Switzerland. He published ambiguous aphorisms such as “Tears are a ship on the sea of tears” and “A tear is as evil as a good word.” The statements were sparsely formatted and, save for the initials D. R., contained no clues about the artist’s intentions or identity. Roth’s ads ran for over a year, until the publisher terminated his contract, reportedly because a significant number of confused and annoyed readers had complained about the mysterious statements. In 1973 Roth bound the sections of the Luzerner Stadtanzeiger that featured his ads; the result is The Lake of Tears.

Gallery label from

Wait, Later This Will Be Nothing: Editions by Dieter Roth, February 17–June 24, 2013.

Medium Artist's book of newspaper
Dimensions page (each): 18 1/2 x 12 13/16" (47 x 32.5 cm); overall (closed): 18 1/2 x 12 13/16 x 2 3/16" (47 x 32.5 x 5.5 cm)
Publisher Dieter Roth, Reykjavík
Printer Luzerner Stadtanzeiger, Lucerne
Edition 150
Credit Deborah Wye Endowment Fund
Object number 1671.2012
Department Drawings and Prints

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