The Argonauts by
An intrepid voyage out to the frontiers of the latest thinking about love, language, and family Maggie Nelson'sThe Argonautsis a genre-bending memoir, a work of "autotheory" offering fresh, fierce, and timely thinking about desire, identity, and the limitations and possibilities of love and language. At its center is a romance: the story of the author's relationship with the artist Harry Dodge. This story, which includes Nelson's account of falling in love with Dodge, who is fluidly gendered, as well as her journey to and through a pregnancy, offers a firsthand account of the complexities and joys of (queer) family-making. Writing in the spirit of public intellectuals such as Susan Sontag and Roland Barthes, Nelson binds her personal experience to a rigorous exploration of what iconic theorists have said about sexuality, gender, and the vexed institutions of marriage and child-rearing. Nelson's insistence on radical individual freedom and the value of caretaking becomes the rallying cry of this thoughtful, unabashed, uncompromising book.
Bettina Pousttchi: in recent years by
Catalog of an exhibition held at Berlinische Galerie, Museum of Modern Art, Berlin, Sept. 12, 2019-Aug. 17, 2020. Includes bibliographical references (pages 259-262). Text in English and German.
The Book of Symbols. Reflections on Archetypal Images by
The Book of Symbols combines original and incisive essays about particular symbols with representative images from all parts of the world and all eras of history. The highly readable texts and over 800 beautiful full-color images come together in a unique way to convey hidden dimensions of meaning. Each of the ca. 350 essays examines a given symbol's psychic background, and how it evokes psychic processes and dynamics. Etymological roots, the play of opposites, paradox and shadow, the ways in which diverse cultures have engaged a symbolic image--all these factors are taken into consideration. Authored by writers from the fields of psychology, religion, art, literature, and comparative myth, the essays flow into each other in ways that mirror the psyche's unexpected convergences. There are no pat definitions of the kind that tend to collapse a symbol; a still vital symbol remains partially unknown, compels our attention and unfolds in new meanings and manifestations over time. Rather than merely categorize, The Book of Symbols illuminates how to move from the visual experience of a symbolic image in art, religion, life, or dreams to directly experiencing its personal and psychological resonance. The Book of Symbols sets new standards for thoughtful exploration of symbols and their meanings, and will appeal to a wide range of readers: artists, designers, dreamers and dream interpreters, psychotherapists, self-helpers, gamers, comic book readers, religious and spiritual searchers, writers, students, and anyone curious about the power of archetypal images.
Bound by Creativity by
What is creativity? While our traditional view of creative work might lead us to think of artists as solitary visionaries, the creative process is profoundly influenced by social interactions even when artists work alone. Sociologist Hannah Wohl draws on more than one hundred interviews and two years of ethnographic research in the New York contemporary art market to develop a rich sociological perspective of creativity. From inside the studio, we see how artists experiment with new ideas and decide which works to abandon, destroy, put into storage, or exhibit. Wohl then transports readers into the art world, where we discover how artists' understandings of their work are shaped through interactions in studio visits, galleries, international art fairs, and collectors' homes. Bound by Creativity reveals how artists develop conceptions of their distinctive creative visions through experimentation and social interactions. Ultimately, we come to appreciate how judgment is integral to the creative process, both resulting in the creation of original works while also limiting an artist's ability to break new ground. Exploring creativity through the lens of judgment sheds new light on the production of cultural objects, markets, and prestige.
Depero futurista. by
Italian futurist Fortunato Depero's 1927 'Deperio Futurista' is universally recognized as a landmark avant-garde example of the 'book as object'. Filled with bold typographic experimentation, daring layouts, and featuring work in nearly artistic medium, it is widely known as 'The Bolted Book' because it is famously bound together by two large industrial aluminum bolts. This new edition is the first exact copy of Depero's groundbreaking monograph produced since its original publication ninety years ago. This exact facsimile--featuring five types of paper and meticulously recreated bolts--includes a wealth of Depero's influential paintings, sculptures, textile and architectural designs--any or all of which can be removed and displayed as individual pieces of art. The accompanying Reader's Guide explores the extraordinary legacy of the project, setting the book in its proper context and making it available as a source of inspiration for a new generation.
First Exposures by
An exact date for the invention of photography is evasive. Scientists and amateurs alike were working on a variety of photographic processes for much of the early nineteenth century. Thus most historians refer to the year 1839 as the "first" year of photography, not because the sensational new medium was invented then, but because that is the year it was introduced to the world. After more than 175 years, and for the first time in English, First Exposures: Writings from the Beginning of Photography brings together more than 130 primary sources from that very year--1839--subdivided into ten chapters and accompanied by fifty-three images of significant visual and historical importance. This is an astonishing work of discovery, selection, and--thanks to Steffen Siegel's introductory texts, notes, and afterword--elucidation. The range of material is impressive: not only all the chemical and technological details of the various processes but also contracts, speeches, correspondence of every kind, arguments, parodies, satires, eulogies, denunciations, journals, and even some poems. Revealing through firsthand accounts the competition, the rivalries, and the parallels among the various practitioners and theorists, this book provides an unprecedented way to understand how the early discourse around photographic techniques and processes transcended national boundaries and interconnected across Europe and the United States.
Georgia O'Keeffe by
"Though she began her legendary career as a painter in the East, Georgia O'Keeffe found in the American Southwest her spiritual home and an inexhaustible source of artistic inspiration. In hundreds of paintings, drawings, and watercolors, spaning over half a century, she expressed so compelling and eloquent a vision of this harsh and beautiful country that the region has become forever associated with her in the American imagination. ... Exhaustive research was undertaken in preparation for the selection of images, in order to present a truly comprehensive overview of the artist's best work during this period." --book jacket.
Glitch Feminism by
A New York Times Best Art Book of 2020 A new manifesto for cyberfeminism: finding liberation in the glitch between body, gender, and technology The divide between the digital and the real world no longer exists. We are connected all the time. How do we find out who we are in this digital era? Where do we create the space to explore our identity? How can we come together in solidarity? A glitch is normally thought of as an error, a faulty overlaying, but, as Legacy Russell shows, liberation can be found within the fissures between gender, technology, and the body. The glitch offers an opportunity for us to perform and transform ourselves in an infinite variety of identities. In Glitch Feminism, Russell makes a series of radical demands through memoir, art, and critical theory, as well as the work of contemporary artists--including Juliana Huxtable, Sondra Perry, boychild, Victoria Sin, and Kia LaBeija--who have travelled through the glitch in their work. Timely and provocative, Glitch Feminism shows how error can lead to revolution.
Joel Sternfeld: American Prospects by
First published in 1987 to critical acclaim, the seminal American Prospects has been likened to Walker Evans' American Photographs and Robert Frank's The Americans in both its ability to visually summarize the zeitgeist of a decade and to influence the course of photography following its publication. This definitive edition of American Prospects contains twelve new pictures, most of which have neither been published nor exhibited. Freed from the size constraints of previous editions, Sternfeld includes portraits and portraits in the landscape which elucidate the human condition in America. The result is a more complex and rounded view of American society that strongly anticipates Sternfeld's "Stranger Passing" series (1985-2000) and links the two bodies of work. If the contamination of paradise has often been Sternfeld's subject, he has likewise tainted the purity of photography in order to capture the condition of America. His shift from spontaneous snapshot to predetermined picture-making helped open the gates for a new type of photography now practiced by Gregory Crewdson, Rineke Dijkstra, Andreas Gursky, Thomas Ruff, Thomas Struth and Jeff Wall, among many others. - Kerry Brougher, former chief curator of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Christopher Wool: Road by
Road is the second of two new artist's books from Christopher Wool (born 1955). It collects photographs taken by the artist between 2015 and 2017--dust roads, gravel roads, roads partly overgrown or full of tire tracks, roads through desert and fields of rocks, through sparse woods and along precipices. Wool's roads are not purposeful trajectories toward destinations but the roads of perpetual, endless motion for motion's sake. In Wool's black-and-white photographs, only seldom does a fork in the road offer the viewer an apparent choice of which way to go. And though each photograph comes from a different location, the place changing from one shot to the next, it still feels like one long road traveled under the clear light of the sun. Christopher Wool: Road is available in a limited edition of 1,200 copies, all signed by the artist.
JR: the Wound by
French "photograffeur" JR's tribute to cultural institutions during COVID-19 Throughout the pandemic, cultural institutions have been forced to shut their doors to the public. Palazzo Strozzi in Florence has commissioned street artist JR (born 1983) to address this unfortunate reality. He has done so by transforming the facade of the Palazzo into a towering photographic collage installation that functions like an anamorphosis: when viewed from a particular vantage point, the distorted image reveals a courtyard, exhibition hall and library. In this volume, JR offers the public a look inside that which, for now, is inaccessible. The Wound (La Ferita) is a poignant reflection on the wound endured by cultural institutions during the pandemic. The book includes a conversation between the artist and curator Arturo Galansino, in which they delve into the genesis and realization of this singular piece.
Katinka Bock: tomorrow's sculpture. by
Tomorrow's Sculpture results from three consecutive exhibitions which took place in 2018: "Sonar" at Kunst Museum Winterthur, "Smog" at MUDAM Luxembourg, and "Radio" at IAC, Villeurbanne/Rhône-Alpes. Around 50 works circulated between the three institutions. In dialogue with the spaces, Katinka Bock displayed the works in different configurations and added site-specific interventions. The photographs by Johannes Schwartz, which were exclusively commissioned for this book, offer a multi-perspectival view on Bock's sculptures and installations from the past fifteen years. With texts by Simone Menegoi, Christina Végh, François Piron, and Christophe Gallois.
Notes: Catalog of an exhibition held at Kunst Museum Winterthur, Switzerland, Jan. 27-Apr. 2, 2018; Mudam Luxembourg - Musee d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, Apr. 28-Sept. 2, 2018; Institut d'art contemporain, Villeurbanne/Rhone-Alpes, France, Oct. 4, 2018-Jan. 19, 2019. Includes bibliographical references. Text in English, German and French.
Mastering Sculpture: the Figure in Clay by
The Figure in Clay (Mastering Sculpture) is a comprehensive workshop on sculpting the human form from head to toe for ceramic artists.
Milton Avery by
An essential overview of the beloved master colorist and pioneer of American modernism Born in 1885 to a working-class family in Connecticut, Milton Avery left school at 16 to work in a factory. Intending to study lettering but soon transferring to painting, he attended evening school for 15 years before moving to New York in the 1920s to pursue a career as a painter. Although he never identified with a particular movement, Avery was a sociable member of the New York art scene. He became a figure of considerable influence for a younger generation of American artists, including Mark Rothko, Adolph Gottlieb and Barnett Newman. His talent was praised by Rothko, who said of his work that "the poetry penetrated every pore of the canvas to the last touch of the brush." With more than 100 color reproductions, this volume is the first overview of Avery's pioneering work in many years. Edith Devaney introduces Avery and his work, while Erin Monroe looks at Avery's early years in Hartford, and Marla Price examines Matisse's influence upon his art. A conversation with the artist's daughter March Avery Cavanaugh and an illustrated chronology by Isabella Boorman complete the book. Milton Avery (1885-1965) was born in upstate New York and studied at the Connecticut League of Art Students and the Art Society in Hartford before moving to Manhattan, where he began his career, in 1925. His works are in museum collections worldwide, including the National Gallery of Art, Tate, the Museum of Modern Art, New York and Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
The Other Side of Now: Foresight in Contemporary Caribbean Art by
"In this exhibition, the Caribbean is conceptualized as both a complex spatial configuration and a temporal formation in progressive and subversive terms. In paintings, installations, videos, and sculptures, these artists illuminate ideas of survival, community, self-acceptance, environmental rights, and creative resourcefulness as central to the challenge of imaging future trajectories for the Caribbean. The 14 artists included in this exhibition are speaking from a personal perspective on a topic that is in direct connection with [Pérez Art Museum Miami's] mission to exhibit works of art that speak to our uniquely diverse community." --page 8.
Notes:
Catalog of an exhibition held at Pérez Art Museum Miami, Florida, July 19, 2019-June 7, 2020. Includes bibliographical references.
Text in English and Spanish.
Outside the palace of me by
Summary: "... offers a powerful look at how we see and imagine ourselves and each other... reflects on global and individual struggles of identity to wonder at the possibilities of a just, joyous, and collective future. Presenting masterful ceramics and watercolours as well as animatronics of dizzying proportions and a dazzling spectrum of handcraft, Boyle has created a visionary new project merging the languages of carnival, theatre, and the art museum, inviting readers to reflect on their roles in, and responses to, the most urgent questions of our time." --back cover wrap.
Notes:
Catalog of an exhibition held at The Rooms, Newfoundland, Sept. 25, 2021-Jan. 4, 2022; Gardiner Museum, Toronto, Feb. 24-May 15, 2022; Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Sept. 1, 2022-Jan. 15, 2023; Vancouver Art Gallery, British Columbia; Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, Ontario.
Includes booklet "Look at us : Looking at Each Other" by Shary Boyle and Crystal Mowry, "Inside the Palace of Me" by Sequoia Miller, and "Visual Glossary" by Shary Boyle.
Includes bibliographical references.
Sometimes I pretend: a poem by
Summary: "This short poem by Nye has been hand set with various sizes and fonts of wood and metal type and printed as a scroll, in multiple colors using a "rainbow roll", on Peter's handmade paper. The paper is also illustrated with two paper pulp stenciled steam punk images made by Donna. Each image was sprayed using 4 colors of pulp through 2 or 3 stencils. The spray pulp was made from old colored rags with no added pigments. The scroll is bound in a unique box structure made with paper pulp stenciled handmade paper and California walnut. The box also features wooden sprocket cranks made from straight grain maple, inscribed with the word "close" and an arrow indicating the direction to rotate the sprocket to return the scroll into the box. There is a pencil attached to the end of the scrolling text to restrain it from slipping into the box." --publisher.
Notes:
Letterpress printing and serigraphy ; handmade paper ; scroll.
Text of poem: "Sometimes I pretend I'm not me, I only work for me. This feels like a secret motor chirring inside my pocket. I think, she will be so glad when she sees the pages neatly written. She will be relieved someone sharpened pencils, folded clothes."
CIArt copy no. 33 of 35.
Wellness for Makers by
For all makers and artists, this helpful guide teaches you that your body is your most valuable tool, and empowers you to create more-healthful movement patterns that build strength and longevity. As the founder of Wellness for Makers®, Ballone knows the challenges that makers face in finding time to focus on their body rather than their creations. The repetitive tasks that artists and crafters take on every day can lead to strain injuries and pain. By following the 40+ exercises outlined in this book with detailed photos, you will learn the best ways to sit, stand, walk, and lift to reduce your risk of injury, relieve pain and strain, and improve your posture and overall well-being. Use this as a resource to learn the actions, movements, and best practices that will allow you to move in a way that strengthens and repairs your body.