Art Books
Gordon Parks: The Atmosphere of Crime, 1957
By Re'al ChristianThis photobook reproduces more than 50 of approximately 300 photographs Parks took during his Life magazine assignment, revealing both the humanity of those who have been convicted of crimes and how race and class determine the extent to which criminals are prosecuted.
Women in Concrete Poetry 1959–1979
By Megan N. LibertyThis addendum to the history of concrete poetry makes evident the connections between concrete poetry and artist books. Chance visual connections between the diverse works included make visible the materiality of language, the unifying component of concrete poetry.
Felix Gonzalez-Torres: Photostats
By Lee Ann NormanMade as the AIDS crisis in the United States was at its peak, the photostats—a series of fixed works with white serif text on black fields that are framed behind glass—reflect the contradictions inherent within human beings; a timeless social commentary on the difficult and ongoing work that lies ahead to create a more just world.
Brick Press’s N.E. Thing Co.: Companies Act
By Jennie WaldowA “reinterpreted facsimile” of a 1978 book project by the N.E. Thing Co., a corporation that served as the umbrella for the activities of the Vancouver-based artists Iain and Ingrid Baxter, is a fascinating hybrid that succeeds as an informational compendium, a reinterpreted facsimile, and an artistic project in its own right.
Dejan Lukić and Nik Kosieradzki’s The Oyster: Or, Radial Suppleness
By Sahar KhraibaniThis unconventional exploration of the oyster through the lens of metaphysics approaches the species as a culinary marvel, an architectural artifact, and a filtration device unlike any other that holds in it the contrast of a hard and highly calcified shell and a soft interior.
