1973 David Rushton Many versions of Joseph Kosuth’s One and three chairs have been exhibited since 1965. In Kosuth’s work, a chair (object), a full size photograph of the chair (representation) and a dictionary definition (description) appear together. Three chairs are shown side by side, signifying ‘chair’. By 1973, the work had been repeated so many times that it had lost its original impact, and had come to signify ‘Kosuth’ instead. Rushton’s One and four/five chairs is a critical comment on how even a sign as simple as ‘chair’ is not free from ambiguous or misdirected readings. By extending the possible chair-signs from ‘three’ to ‘four/five’ he indicates the uncertainties of signification.
