Louise Lawler: Receptions: Why Pictures Now

(Hardback)

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Description

Published in conjunction with a major survey of the artist Louise Lawler, this catalogue charts the creative practice of one of the most influential artists working in the fields of picture-making and institutional critique. Since the 1970s, Lawler has expanded from a feminist position upon the legacy of institutional critique initiated by an earlier generation of Conceptual artists, including Marcel Broodthaers, Daniel Buren and Michael Asher, and methods of appropriation in parallel with certain artists of her generation, such as Sherrie Levine, Cindy Sherman, Sarah Charlesworth and Richard Prince. Engaging a variety of art-world positions, including that of artist, curator, fact-checker, publicist and photo editor, Lawler has distinguished herself as one of the most creative artists of our age. Presenting Lawler's multifaceted practice across mediums - photography, sound work, film, objects and mural-scale installations - this book offers new critical perspectives through eight essays by renowned scholars that unpack her tight, witty, thought-provoking work. The rich selection of plates comprehensively records the artist's practice to date and underscores the radical inventiveness of Lawler's practice. The performative nature of Lawler's practice is mirrored in the design of the book's dust jacket; when turned inside out, it features a signature Lawler picture as an 'adjusted to fit' poster. The book is an indispensable resource for anyone interested in late-20th and early-21st-century art.

Reviews

an elegant and engaging catalogue--Jennifer Krasinski "Bookforum"
[Lawler's] careful attention to artistic contexts, modes of presentation, and viewers' receptions generates witty, affective situations that contribute to institutional transformation.-- "It's Liquid"
A sweeping survey of piercing skepticism . . . [Lawler] has cast a gimlet eye on art-world systems, critiquing collectors, museums, and other art.-- "New York Magazine"
Lawler deploys photography as a way of staying close to and critical of the mainstream, simultaneously.--Alex Kitnick "Artforum"
Louise Lawler is one of the great light-heavyweights of the 1980s Pictures Generation, an artist of stealth, wit and elegant understatement, adept at playing the art world against itself.--Roberta Smith "The New York Times"
Louise Lawler's beguiling institutional critique . . . by far the most arresting artist of her kind.--Peter Schjeldahl "The New Yorker"
One of the season's brightest stars.--Holland Cotter "The New York Times"
The American photographer Louise Lawler may be the wittiest and most gimlet-eyed member of the Pictures Generation, revered for her matchless photographs of the secret life of art, as it cycles through gallery back rooms, collectors' homes, and museum installations.--Andrea K Scott "The New Yorker"
With oblique humor and a zest for unusual methods, Lawler critiques the art system writ large.--Andrew Russeth "W Magazine"

Author Bio

Roxana Marcoci is Senior Curator in the Department of Photography at The Museum of Modern Art, New York.