| |
| |
|
|
|
Synopsis
A surrealist love story about obsession, imagination, and the hidden meaning of the everyday.
Review
Heavily immersed in the French art scene of the first half of the 20th century, André Breton was an iconic figure among the surrealist painters and poets. He collaborated with the likes of Louis Aragon, Max Ernst, and Man Ray, editing various late-Dada and surrealist journals, as well as formulating an aesthetics theory and writing surrealist poetry and prose. Of his few works that have been translated from French, we have Nadja — a curious novella which embodies many of the Breton's aesthetic principles expressed in a literary narrative.
Reading like a personal memoir, the first half of the book recounts various incidental and mesmerizing occurrences in Breton's everyday life and his brief encounters with other surrealist artists. He heightens our sensitivity to the mystery of coincidence before introducing us to Nadja, who wanders into Breton's life, leading to a mutual obsession between the girl and the writer.
Through the second half of the book we follow the narrative of Breton's highly unusual relationship with the enigmatic Nadja: she is at once a siren and a muse, living by the whims of her imagination, and reality lies at her feet "like a lapdog." She and Breton journey aimlessly through the streets of Paris, occasionally encountering lunatics and drunks, and a recurring series of happenings that continue to haunt them and color their conversations and moods. Accompanying the narrative are several reproductions of Nadja's mysterious drawings, as well as various surreal photographs taken by Breton and others.
The book indeed has a hypnotic affect, and we walk away from it with a new eye toward so-called coincidence and the meaning behind the seemingly ordinary. Breton charms and terrifies with his story of a quickly evaporating love affair that may or may not have existed, with a woman quite mad and yet at times enlightened. Whether Breton loved her or perhaps only the amour fou itself is for readers to decide. This puzzling and beautiful book, however, makes the answer quite inconsequential. (BB)
|
| back to top |
 |
| |
| FICTION: SHORT STORIES |
 |
This Is Not It
by Lynne Tillman
|
 |
 |
 |
| Published: |
2002 |
| Pages: |
256 |
| Publisher: |
Distributed Art Publishers |
Links:
This Is Not It limited edition
Author interview
Excerpt from Tillman's contribution to 110 Stories: New York Writes After September 11
|
|
|
Synopsis
An experimental writer responds to the work of 23 contemporary artists with
a clever and engaging story collection.
Review
In her smartly designed short story collection This Is Not It, Lynne
Tillman responds to 23 works by contemporary artists, taking on such heavies
as Juan Munoz, Roni Horn, Jeff Koons, Diller & Scofidio, Laura Letinsky,
Barbara Kruger, and Gary Schneider. Gathering 20 years of short stories that
she contributed to artists' catalogues and monographs, Tillman presents a
unique retrospective of her own work. She reproduces the art pieces as cover
pages for every story, creating a dialogue between the stories and the
artwork.
Relying on clever wordplay and absurd, fractured plotlines, Tillman's stories engage, and finally evade, the pieces of art that are their foundation. She balances the melancholic tone of her writing with a perverse sense of black humor and quiet, piercing insights into our
daily lives. At its best, This Is Not It combines the imagination and readability of Jorge Luis Borges, the playful fantasies of Kathy Acker, and the understated prose of Lydia Davis. Concepts occasionally usurp characters altogether, yet piece after piece offers an absurd and delicate meditation on the nature of image and memory.
Metaphysical love stories dominate this collection, as couples meet but never quite connect. An eerie Roni Horn work, consisting only of the fading words "Between Visibility and Nonexistence," produces a haunting monologue from a man trying to erase himself from a lover's life. Other stories are brief fables that engage the artworks more directly, such as with "Dead Sleep," in which Tillman charts the life of a man whose chronic fear of sleeping dominates his existence — playing off a Dolores Marat photograph of a figure embalmed in bed sheets. Book-ending the collection are two compelling novellas, "Come and Go" and "Thrilled to Death," which weave together disparate themes and characters, adding a dose of continuity. This is a bold multimedia project that successfully veneers memoir and art criticism with masterful prose sleight-of-hand. (TW)
|
| back to top |
|
| |
| NONFICTION: ARCHITECTURE |
|
Zaha Hadid: Space for Art
Edited by Markus Dochantschl
|
 |
 |
|
| Published: |
2004 |
| Pages: |
112 |
| Publisher: |
Lars Muller Publishers |
|
|
Synopsis
A fascinating look into the making of the Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati, which is both a dynamic museum and the renowned architect's first American project.
Review
This beautifully designed book is an excellent visual guide to understanding the creative process behind the development of the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC) in Cincinnati by Baghdad-born, London-based architect Zaha Hadid, one of the leaders of the deconstructivist movement in architecture. Her work has been extensively published, discussed, and exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide. She has also won several prestigious design competitions, but prior to receiving this commission, very few of her futuristic proposals had ever been built. Cincinnati was her breakthrough, and by the time it was completed in 2003, Hadid had high-profile projects underway on four continents.
CAC's three major design features — an undulating ramp that starts at the street and leads visitors through multiple levels, interlocking exhibition spaces, and varied but complementary facades of concrete and glass — are stylishly revealed here through reproductions of drawings, models, photographs, and site plans of the building in flux as it emerges into its final, finished form. Reflecting CAC's physical structure, the book's cover is constructed in paper relief and page backgrounds shift from white to black.
An essay by Charles Desmarais, CAC's former director, charts the course of construction from a May 1997 symposium on great buildings to the selection committee's choice and the realization of the edifice while architectural critic Joseph Giovannini provides insight into the historical context of Hadid's masterpiece — rightly comparing its cultural significance to Frank Lloyd Wright's 1959 Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York. No doubt, this building directly influenced the decision to award her the 2004 Pritzker Architecture Prize. (PL)
|
| back to top |
|
| |
MORE ART BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
|
 |
Andy Warhol 365 Takes: The Andy Warhol Museum Collection
by Staff of Andy Warhol Museum (2004)
|
|
Delving deeply into Warhol's vast body of paintings, works on paper, photographs, and films, as well as his extensive time capsules, this well-made handbook to America's most famous pop artist is chock full of colorful images, entertaining ephemera, and humorous quotes and anecdotes.
|
 |
| |
 |
Vitamin P : New Perspectives in Painting
by Barry Schwabsky (2004)
|
|
A comprehensive survey of contemporary painting, this smartly designed volume features over 100 international artists — from Haluk Akakçe to Lisa Yuskavage — with introductory texts and multiple illustrations for each, plus Artforum editor Barry Schwabsky's critical analysis of painting since the late 1950s.
|
|
| |
 |
Wim Delvoye: Early Works (1968-1971)
by Wim Delvoye (2003)
|
|
Designed like a catalogue raisonné, this elegant tome presents a whimsical body of work by bad-boy artist Wim Delvoye, best known for his Cloaca machines that simply eat food and defecate. Ironically, the accomplished artworks on display were made between the ages three to six.
|
|
| |
 |
Blink.
by Editors of Phaidon Press (2004)
|
|
This large rectangular compilation showcases the work of 100 of the world's most inspiring contemporary photographers, selected by ten international critics, curators, and creative directors. With supportive texts and important essays on current photographic practices, Blink provides endless hours of savvy entertainment.
|
|
| |
 |
Prince Eagle: An Artist's Book
by Elizabeth Peyton (2001)
|
|
Inspired by a biography of Napoleon, Elizabeth Peyton's stylish artist book presents an obsessive series of paintings, drawings, and photographs that charmingly capture her muse, a man named Tony who bears a striking resemblance to the young emperor, in a variety of locales.
|
|
| |
 |
Yoshitomo Nara:
Nothing Ever Happens
by Yoshitomo Nara and others (2003)
|
|
Japanese pop artist Yoshitomo Nara's drawings, paintings, and sculptures are interspersed with personal reflections and scholarly studies on the artist and his work by idiosyncratic celebrities, such as Deborah Harry and Leonard Nimoy, curator Ingrid Schaffner, and others fans in this hip-looking catalogue from a traveling show.
|
|
| |
 |
Pipilotti Rist: Apricots along the Streets
by Pipilotti Rist (2001)
|
|
An oversize pocket book filled with colorful photographs, video stills, poems, drawings, stickers, and whatnot by the talented Swiss video and installation artist. Reading more like a daydream than a book, one page leads into the next with pleasurable panache.
|
|
| |
 |
The Interventionists: Users' Manual for the Creative Disruption of Everyday Life
by Nato Thompson and Gregory Sholette (2004)
|
|
A guide to alternative artistic practices, the MASS MoCA catalogue engages the public beyond the realm of the white box. Classified by choice of tactics, from mobile projects to pedagogy, this book provides an inside view into artistic (creative) activism.
|
|
| |
 |
Barry McGee
by Barry McGee, Josh Lazcano, and Raphaela Platow (2004)
|
|
Already coveted as a collectable, this chic little zine-turned-artist's book mixes reproductions of McGee's large-scale installation at the Rose Art Museum with photographs of the artist in action, as well as lively street graffiti and an insightful interview with McGee by museum curator Raphaela Platow.
|
|
| |
 |
Juergen Teller Go-Sees
by Juergen Teller (1999)
|
|
The German-born, London-based Juergen Teller leads a charmed life as both an artist and a fashion photographer. For this monumental tome from 1999 (a bit earlier than our other picks), he snapped every young lady who came to his door in search of a bit of fame and fortune — some 426 talents — with charming results.
|
| |
|
| back to top |
 |
| |
BOOK NEWS
A few notable bits of recent book news, events, and information.
|
National Book Award nominees announced (Christian Science Monitor)
|
The list includes a number of little-known titles and a few surprises, such as the absence of Philip Roth's latest novel.
|
The Algonquin Hotel tries to court a new generation of struggling writers (NY Times)
|
The venerable hotel tries to recreate the days of Dorothy Parker by offering discounted lunches.
|
They can write, but can they spell? (Council of Literary Magazines and Presses)
|
Prominent writers including James Frey, Tama Janowitz, and Heidi Julavits to participate in a spelling bee benefit in New York City.
|
Whiting Writers' Awards recipients named (Whiting Foundation)
|
Winners of the $35,000 prize include Victor LaValle and Daniel Alarcon.
|
Some writers offer their political positions (Slate)
|
Opinions on the presidential candidates from Amy Tan, Dan Chaon, George Saunders, and others (as if it matters now).
|
Tom Wolfe's take on America makes waves across the Atlantic (Guardian)
|
Sounding curmudgeonly, Wolfe talks about sex in the United States as it pertains to his new novel, I Am Charlotte Simmons.
|
Bestselling 9/11 report to become miniseries (Washington Post)
|
NBC announces plans.
|
Booker Prize awarded to Alan Hollinghurst (BBC)
|
The UK's most prestigious literary prize recognizes its first "gay novel."
|
|
| back to top |
| |
|
|
