Francesco Manacorda Libros

The enduring relevance of Dutch-born artist Piet Mondrian (1872–1944) speaks to his pioneering role in abstract art, but also to the complex relationship between his artworks, the space around them, and the belief that they were conceived to inspire. His studios in Amsterdam, Paris, and New York refl ect di erent stages of the painter’s way of thinking as well as his evolving intentions. Each studio was designed to allow the artist to perform a clearly defi ned intellectual and social role. An eye-opening look into the spaces that inspired him, this book also explores Mondrian’s broader relationship with architecture and urbanism, particularly through a comparison of his earlier Parisian works and those made in the frenetic modern cityscape of New York. Vividly illustrated with many of Mondrian’s best-known worksand photographs of the artist in his studios, this intriguing book sheds new light on his creative process.

Die Schönheit und Wunder der Natur hat Künstler und Architekten seit jeher inspiriert. Seit den 1960er Jahren haben die Effekte des Klimawandels und die allgemeine Geringschätzung der natürlichen Umwelt zu einem neuen Bewusstein der Dringlichkeit geführt. Radical Nature ist die erste Publikation, in der verschiedene künstlerische Positionen zu diesen Ereignissen zusammengetragen werden. Darunter befinden sich ausgearbeitete Utopien, aber auch konkrete Lösungsansätze für eine sich beständig verändernde Gesellschaft. Das Buch gibt einen ideengeschichtlichen Überblick, der von der Land Art über Umweltaktivismus, experimenteller Architektur bis hin zu utopischen Gesellschaftsentwürfen reicht. Arbeiten von wegweisenden Architekten wie die Architectural Collective Ant Farm oder Richard Buckminster Fuller sowie Künstler wie Joseph Beuys, Agnes Denes, Hans Haacke oder Robert Smithson werden ebenso präsentiert wie die Werke einer jüngeren Künstlergeneration wie etwa Heather & Ivan, R& Sie (n), Philippe Rahm und Simon Starling.

"In 2000, I had a year long residency at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. In addition to creating a solo show of paintings based in children's coloring books, I collaborated with the Givens Collection of African American Literature at the University of Minnesota. I did not have a specific project in mind when approaching their vast holdings, but after a couple of hours of wandering through their stacks and randomly pulling books off the shelves it became clear one could trace a history of black people in the United States simply by examining how we were represented on book covers."--Foreword

Glenn Ligon (b. 1960) is one of the most significant American artists of his generation. Much of his work relates to abstract cxpressionism and minimalist painting, remixing formal characteristics to highlight the cultural and social histories of the time, such as the civil rights movement. This new book brings together artworks and other material Ligon references or work with which he shares certain affinities. The book illustrates works by Ligon and other artists--including Chris Ofili, Willem de Kooning, Jackson Pollock, Lorna Simpson, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, and Jasper Johns--accompanied by texts by Ligon, Francesco Manacorda, Alex Farquharson, and Gregg Bordowitz, and an anthology of some 20 texts selected/excerpted by Ligon.

From Bauhaus jewelry and West African textiles to contemporary portraiture and sculpture, this unique exhibition and accompanying full color catalog curated by celebrated fashion designer/curator Duro Olowu (b. 1965) explores the rituals of making that underpin an artists work. Olowu selected material by over 70 artists, including rarely seen works by Anni Albers, Alighiero Boetti, Wangechi Mutu, Alice Neel, Chris Ofili and Irving Penn as well as newer paintings by Lynette Yiadom-Boakye from the 1920s to the present. By setting up unexpected dialogues between historic and contemporary artists working in a myriad of mediatextile, painting, sculpture, photography and collageOlowu reveals a shared preoccupation with themes of gender, race, beauty, sexuality and the body. The volume includes an in-depth conversation between Olowu and Glenn Ligon, and texts by Jennifer Higgie and Shanay Jhaveri, which together highlight the intricate layers of history and place that influence the making of art.