What is an Art Book? Volume 3
Conceived initially as a part of the London based collaborative event by the Mews Project Space 'Artists books Weekend' “What is an Art Book?” is an investigation in to the politics of artists books, its mode of production and its recent resurgence in the art world. For this our third volume The Modern Language Experiment is very excited to be collaborating with two New York spaces. Garis & Hahn and Young & Starving. An Art Book today can be seen to occupy various different positions including that of a piece of theory, a catalogue, a printed exhibition, a piece of art in itself, a supplement to a pre-existing piece. It can be a proposal for the future or an examination of the present or what has passed. “What is an Art Book?” will be an investigation of what an Art Book is in terms of material, conceptual, industrial and political concerns. Over 50 artists, writers, curators, and other practitioners are invited to respond to the title of the project by contributing their interp
Conceived initially as a part of the London based collaborative event by the Mews Project Space 'Artists books Weekend' “What is an Art Book?” is an investigation in to the politics of artists books, its mode of production and its recent resurgence in the art world.
For this our third volume The Modern Language Experiment is very excited to be collaborating with two New York spaces. Garis & Hahn and Young & Starving.
An Art Book today can be seen to occupy various different positions including that of a piece of theory, a catalogue, a printed exhibition, a piece of art in itself, a supplement to a pre-existing piece. It can be a proposal for the future or an examination of the present or what has passed. “What is an Art Book?” will be an investigation of what an Art Book is in terms of material, conceptual, industrial and political concerns. Over 50 artists, writers, curators, and other practitioners are invited to respond to the title of the project by contributing their interp
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
“What is an Art Book?” is a question that is defined by the density and the
variety of the responses it evokes. This is a complex question with many
possible responses, which will become evident as you travel through the
content produced by the 51 contributors. In these 380 pages you will find
work by artists, writers gallery directors, magazine publishers, curators and
scriptwriters. Their individual languages collide bringing written language,
drawing, video, performance, graphic design, painting, sculpture, photography,
found material as well as hybrids of all of the above.
This book was made as the Modern Language Experiment’s response to the
Whitechapel Art Gallery’s Art Book Fair, at Garis and Hahn over the course
of a weekend. Much of the content was produced on site in the gallery space
surrounded by a constant stream of other contributors and audience members;
but many more were made in isolation within the artists own studio and brought
to the gallery. Through exposure, collaboration, isolation and constraints we
hope that we can create an alternative model for art book production and in
doing so question the books role and impact on today’s society.
With this book we have instigated a conversation that we will continue to
develop, a question which will be asked again and again for it is a good
question. As the masochists in us all yearn for the definitive in what cannot
be cornered.
Long live the Art book.
Matthew & Keh
12 October 2012 & 2013
London
11
Change language