ART BOOK : The Art of Not Making The NewArtist/Artisan Relationship Michael Petry

Image: Aaron Young UNDERDOG

When an artist does not make his or her own work, what does it mean for the nature of art, and for the status of the artist? What is the difference between an artist and an artisan? How can we distinguish art from craft ? Do we even need to? What is the relationship between creativity and production? Where is the art and where is the artist? What, indeed, is the art work?

Image: Gavin Turk Chips to go

The Art of Not Making:The New Artist/Artisan Relationship is the first book to tackle these questions head on, exploring the concepts of authorship, artistic originality, skill, craftsmanship and the creative act, and highlighting the vital role that skills from craft and industrial production play in creating some of today’s most innovative and highly sought-after works of art. Michael Petry gives insights into the history of these collaborations, citing works from Duchamp and before and giving a context to the growing global collaborations of artists and artisans.

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Featuring interviews with artists and craftspersons about their creative collaborations, The Art of Not Making also includes analyses and illustrations of hundreds of artworks by many important international artists, including AiWeiwei, Ghada Amer, Louise Bourgeois, Chris Burden, Daniel Buren, Matthew Barney, James Lee Byars, Maurizio Cattelan, José Damasceno,Angela de la Cruz, Liam Gillick, Subodh ,Gupta, Mona Hatoum, Carsten Höller, Roni Horn, Gary Hume, Sherrie Levine,Takashi Murakami, Jorge Pardo, Ugo Rondionone, Kiki Smith, Simon Starling, Gavin Turk, Mark Wallinger, Fred Wilson, Cerith Wyn
Evans,Aaron Young and many more.

Image: Marc Newson Julia Necklace 2009

Author
Dr. Michael Petry is Curator of the Royal Academy Schools Gallery, Director of MOCA London, and is currently artist in residence at Sir John Soane’s Museum, London. He is the author of many books, including Installation Art in the New Millennium and Installation Art.

Price: £29.95 hardback
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