TAKEN FROM HERE TO WHERE IT CAME FROM AND TAKEN TO A PLACE AND USED IN SUCH A MANNER THAT IT CAN ONLY REMAIN AS A REPRESENTATION OF WHAT IT WAS WHERE IT CAME FROM

Lawrence Weiner established himself as one of the leading figures in the Conceptual Art Movement during the late 1960s by creating works that challenge traditional assumptions about the nature of the art object. Using language as his medium, Weiner set out to question the conventional relationship between artist and viewer and to redefine standard systems of artistic display and distribution. In 1968 he issued a statement of intent, outlining the three conditions in which his works could exist: they could be built by him; fabricated by someone else; or not constructed at all. His works have the potential for being realized in countless ways and contexts; they may be shown outdoors as a public project, published in a book, printed on a matchbook cover, or simply spoken. He is best known, however, for written phrases presented on gallery or museum walls, typically in stenciled or vinyl lettering. Weiner felt the permanence and integrity of a linguistic construction, presented as a title in the form of a simple descriptive phrase on the wall, was less vulnerable to change over time than an actual sculpture. This work—which describes a physical act of displacement as a metaphor for representation—and its title are one and the same.