The Menil Collection published the first comprehensive book on Rauschenberg’s Cardboards (1971–72) and related pieces. This publication features essays by scholars and curators, including Menil staff. This publication, alongside the museum’s exhibitions, has helped to contextualise the Cardboards within Rauschenberg’s broader career, emphasising their commentary on materialism and disposability in modern life.
The Cardboards series marks a pivotal moment in Robert Rauschenberg’s career, in which he explored the boundaries between painting and sculpture using only cardboard boxes and related materials. The Menil Collection in Houston holds several pieces from this series, including National Spinning/Red/Spring (Cardboard) from 1971, and has played a significant role in preserving and showcasing this body of work. The museum’s relationship with Rauschenberg dates back to the 1960s, when the de Menil family began collecting his art, deepening over the decades through exhibitions and acquisitions. The connection is both curatorial and historical: the Menil Collection not only owns and displays these works, but has also contributed to their scholarly interpretation and public appreciation, establishing itself as a key institution for understanding Rauschenberg’s Cardboards series.
We have a copy of the 152-page illustrated hardcover, published by Yale University Press in 2007 for the Menil Collection. The authors are Josef Helfenstein, Yve-Alain Bois and Clare Elliott. Language: English, dimensions: (28.75 x 25.1 cm), ISBN: 978-0300123784, printed in Italy.
