Caleb Zipperer
Altar of Reason, 2021
Cast bronze
H. 90 x W. 183 x D. 44cm
H. 35 3/8 x W. 72 1/8 x D. 17 3/8"
H. 35 3/8 x W. 72 1/8 x D. 17 3/8"
Edition of 8 + 2AP
© Caleb Zipperer 2021
Photo: Graham Pearson
Further images
The “Altar of Reason,” a console constructed from cast bronze, confronts Zipperer’s own absence of faith. Zipperer, who was raised Southern Baptist, thoroughly rejects the hellfire and brimstone faith of...
The “Altar of Reason,” a console constructed from cast bronze, confronts Zipperer’s own absence of faith. Zipperer, who was raised Southern Baptist, thoroughly rejects the hellfire and brimstone faith of his youth, especially given the transgressions of his ancestors, who were documented to own slaves. Raised without ever meeting his father, Zipperer also struggles to understand his own origin story. The console is a monument to absence, but also a place where he imagines an authority figure might preach the truth, rather than lies than condemn. Taking inspiration from primitive art, Zipperer’s console invents a stylistic language mired in lost history, dominated by clean, strong lines that nonetheless nod to biomorphic forms.