“Plain Salt (Cardboard)” is an installation artwork created by Robert Rauschenberg in 1971. This artwork belongs to the Neo-Dada art movement. Renowned for repurposing ordinary materials into compelling artistic compositions, Rauschenberg utilizes various cut and folded cardboard pieces, primarily branded “Plain Salt,” to construct a layered and textured assembly.
The artwork features an array of flattened and partially opened cardboard boxes affixed together, creating a visually complex and tactile surface. The cardboard elements are marked by printing, labeling, and incidental wear, emphasizing a sense of everyday utility and discarded simplicity. Utilized box elements inscribed with product branding and handling instructions echo commercial and mundane origins, embodying Rauschenberg’s thematic focus on transforming commonplace objects into artistic expressions. The arrangement of boxes extends outward in various planes, forming a relief-like structure that challenges traditional notions of painting and sculpture. The muted, earthy tones of the cardboard contribute to the artwork’s understated yet evocative presence.
