The Gay Science, 1966

R. B. Kitaj’s edition The Gay Science (1965), from the portfolio Mahler Becomes Politics, Beisbol, combines photographic imagery, printed text and geometric structures in a complex, dreamlike composition. A view of blue sky and clouds appears through a grid-like architectural framework, surrounded by fragments of poetry and prose, while additional photographic and abstract elements occupy the lower part of the image. The fragmented perspective and juxtaposition of disparate materials create a sense of visual and intellectual layering characteristic of Kitaj’s work.
The portfolio was inspired by Kitaj’s friendship with the poet Jonathan Williams and Williams’s book of poems Mahler, which responded to the symphonies of Gustav Mahler. The title The Gay Science echoes Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophical work of the same name and reflects Kitaj’s interest in bringing together literary, musical, political and cultural references. The work is in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art, New York, and Tate, London.