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Two Oranges

Zoe Leonard American

Not on view

At once poignant and incisive, Two Oranges consists of the skins of two pieces of fruit that Leonard "repaired" with thread. The artist made no effort to arrest the decay of the fruit—it is and always will be frail, scarred, and perishable. Its "very essence," Leonard once said of a related work, "is to decompose." Created at the height of the AIDS crisis, Two Oranges was intended as a critique of prejudice and indifference, as was a related work, Strange Fruit (for David ) (1992–97; Philadelphia Museum of Art). It also serves as an unconventional memorial to Leonard’s friend, the artist and AIDS activist David Wojnarowicz, who died of an AIDS-related illness in 1992.

Two Oranges, Zoe Leonard (American, born New York, 1961), Fruit, thread, buttons, zippers, needles, wax, sinew, string, wax

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Two Oranges, Zoe Leonard (American, born New York, 1961), Fruit, thread, buttons, zippers, needles, wax, sinew, string, wax
Two Oranges, Zoe Leonard (American, born New York, 1961), Fruit, thread, buttons, zippers, needles, wax, sinew, string, wax

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