In addition to the Felix Gonzalez-Torres Foundation’s main priority of fostering and facilitating individuals’ direct experiences with the work, which follows Gonzalez-Torres’s primary intention, a significant Foundation activity is providing language around the nature and structure of the works, in accordance with the type and forms of language that Gonzalez-Torres developed and has been provided to owners and exhibitors on an ongoing basis. The Foundation has developed a format to provide access to such language, referred to as 'Core Tenets,' for those works/bodies of works that have specific, yet sometimes open-ended parameters.
While each body of work follows its own set of guiding principles, Gonzalez-Torres’s practice utilized intentional variations, within and between bodies of work, in order to foster engagement and questioning. Therefore, it may be productive to consider the Core Tenets for different works/bodies of work in relationship to one another.
While the Core Tenets hosted on the Felix Gonzalez-Torres Foundation website are inherently documents that may shift over time, currently each Core Tenets document is in-process. They are shared here to prioritize accessibility and reflect the Foundation’s ongoing research activities. The Core Tenets will continue to be updated as research progresses and language develops, and links will be updated as each document reaches a more final state.
*If the Core Tenets are cited, the Foundation requests that the citation describe the language as part of an in-process/ongoing/developing language project. As in: “An in-process document shared on the Felix Gonzalez-Torres Foundation’s website describes the core tenets of the work as…”
Bodies of Works for which there are Core Tenets:
Core Tenets for Billboards (In-process)
Core Tenets for Candy Works (In-process)
Core Tenets for Curtains (In-process - forthcoming)
Core Tenets for Light Strings (In-process)
Core Tenets for Mirrors (Forthcoming)
Core Tenets for Paper Stacks (In-process)
Core Tenets for Photostats (Forthcoming)
Core Tenets for Portraits (In-process)
Core Tenets for Puzzles (Forthcoming)
Individual Works for which there are Core Tenets:
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (Loverboy), 1989 (In-process - forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (Perfect Lovers), 1991 and "Untitled" (Perfect Lovers), 1987-1990 (Forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (Welcome), 1991 (Forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (March 5th) #1, 1991 (In-process - forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (March 5th) #2, 1991 (In-process - forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (Go-Go Dancing Platform), 1991 (In-process - forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (A Portrait), 1991/1995 (Forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (Orpheus, Twice), 1991 (In-process - forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (Fear), 1991 (Forthcoming)
Core Tenets for "Untitled" (Sagitario), 1994-1995 (Forthcoming)