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    Artists and Their Books / Books and Their Artists

    June 26–October 28, 2018

    Getty Research Institute

    The splayed pages of this book, composed of flyers and pamphlets from labor rights organizations in Southern California, flare out in a colorful semicircular array.

    Labor Is Entitled to All It Creates, Andrea Bowers, 2012. The Getty Research Institute, 3023-849. Courtesy of the artist and Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects. © Andrea Bowers

  • A unique book lies open to a spread featuring, on the left, turquoise, blue, and brown hand-marbled end paper. On the right is a drawing of a feline silhouette and backdrop beneath text in all capitals that reads G-R-F-A-L-W-K-V.

    GRFALWKV, Christopher Russell, 2013. The Getty Research Institute, 2016.M.7. © Christopher Russell

  • A large brushed aluminum case is displayed open to reveal a colorful vanity mirror in its upper section. The lower section contains a Mexican wrestling mask atop a shiny red box on leopard skin fabric.

    DOC/UNDOC: Documentado/Undocumented: Ars Shamánica Performática, Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Felicia Rice, 2014. Video by Gustavo Vazquez, text by Jennifer A. González, sound by Zachary James Watkins. The Getty Research Institute, 2015-B6. © 2018 by Felicia Rice and Moving Parts Press

  • A slab of Plexiglas sheets hosts a series of green, yellow, and blue geometric patterns, with the top layer curled back in a wave formation.

    Stab/Ghost, Tauba Auerbach, 2013. The Getty Research Institute, 2016.M.18. © Tauba Auerbach. Courtesy Paula Cooper Gallery, New York

  • A book with a Plexiglas exterior stands upright with the cover open to reveal distressed pages of plastic-sealed cheese. The title poetrie appears in lowercase letters across the top of the first page.

    Poetrie, Dieter Roth, 1967. The Getty Research Institute, 94-B19053. © Dieter Roth Estate. Courtesy Hauser & Wirth

  • An open pop-up book displays a three-dimensional paper cutout of a scene featuring several human figures.

    Why the Revolving Door: The Neighborhood, the Prisons, Beth Thielen, 1992. The Getty Research Institute, 95-B116. © 1992 Beth Thielen

  • The Philosopher's Stone, Barbara Fahrner and Daniel E. Kelm, 1992. The Getty Research Institute, 94-B18918. © Barbara Fahrner and Daniel E. Kelm

    Video: Watch the curator open The Philosopher's Stone. Courtesy Barbara Fahrner and Daniel E. Kelm

  • A series of handmade books takes the form of small buildings, together creating a cityscape composed of cardboard, metal, paper, and texts.

    Bookscape, Johanna Drucker, 1986–1988. The Getty Research Institute, 94-B18934. Courtesy Johanna Drucker

  • A print created in the tradition of large-format atlases engraved on copper plates depicts the geographical borders of California with the word "CALIFORNIACID" printed in the center. The names of artists, painters, and thinkers from the renaissance to the contemporary era appear within the state's b

    CALIFORNIACID, Didier Mutel, 2017. From Didier Mutel, The First Atlas of the United States of Acid. The Getty Research Institute, 2018.PR.12. © Atelier Didier Mutel

  • A black-and-white photograph printed on two full pages of an opened book reveals a sunflower disc and its florets against a painted white background.

    Die berühmten Orden der Nacht (The Celebrated Orders of the Night), Anselm Kiefer, 1996. The Getty Research Institute, 2818-250. © Anselm Kiefer

Artists and Their Books / Books and Their Artists

June 26–October 28, 2018, Getty Research Institute

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Artists' books occupy a creative space between traditional books and contemporary works of art, challenging what a book can be. This highly visual and experiential presentation of some of the most lively and surprising works from the Research Institute's extensive collections focuses on artists' books that can be unpacked, unfolded, unfurled, or disassembled. They are made to be displayed on the wall or deployed as sculptures or installations. The exhibition seeks to provoke new inquiry into the nature of art and to highlight the essential role that books play in contemporary culture.

LIST OF ARTISTS

Nobuyoshi Araki
Lisa Anne Auerbach
Tauba Auerbach
Raffaele de Bernardi
Sandow Birk
Andrea Bowers
Chris Burden
Jan Činčera
Johanna Drucker
Dave Eggers
Felipe Ehrenberg
Olafur Eliasson
Timothy C. Ely
Barbara Fahrner
Guillermo Gómez-Peña
Jennifer A. González
Katharina Grosse
Robert Heinecken
Leandro Katz
Ellsworth Kelly
Daniel E. Kelm
Anselm Kiefer
Monika Kulicka
Sol Lewitt
Russell Maret
Didier Mutel
Katherine Ng
Clemente Padín
Felicia Rice
Dieter Roth
Ed Ruscha
Christopher Russell
Barbara T. Smith
Keith A. Smith
Buzz Spector
Beth Thielen
Gustavo Vazquez
Cecilia Vicuña
Ines von Ketelhodt
Zachary James Watkins
William Wegman
Tian Wei

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