Gas Snake

Artist Willie Cole (American, born 1955)

Date1992

Dimensions62 × 26 × 29 in. (157.5 × 66 × 73.7 cm)

MediumGas pump nozzle, rubber hose, rebar

ClassificationSculpture

Credit LineGift of Billy E. Hodges

Object number

2023.328

Not on View

DescriptionThe sculpture consists of a long, black, gas pump hose, approximately 62 inches in length, which lay partially coiled on the floor. One end of the hose appears to rise, emerging from the coil, in a serpentine-like fashion, leaning first to the left, and then bending to the right while continuing its move upwards. At the top of the hose, sits a partially curved, rusted, and worn-down gas pump nozzle, resembling a snake’s head.

Published ReferencesBill Hodges Gallery, Masters of Sculpture, African Americans, et.al., New York, NY, 2022.Exhibition HistoryBill Hodges Gallery, New York, NY, The Summer Exhibition, July 8–August 21, 2021.Comparative ReferencesSee also Sims, Patterson, Anxious Objects: Willie Cole's Favorite Brands, Montclair, N.J., Montclair Art Museum, 2006, p.58-59.