Product Description

Paul McCarthy creates sculptures figuring animal/vegetable/human hybrids, Disney-esque installations and slapstick performances in weird evocations of a national subconscious. The psycho-sexual desires and anxieties induced by the media and the built environment of contemporary America emerge in his collisions of plastic prosthetics and simulated body fluids. These have been variously deployed: through live actions, often documented on video, and more recently in outsized and artificial rural environments. Ralph Rugoff surveys McCarthy's installations and sculptures since the early-1970s, while Kristine Stiles, an expert on performance, talks with the artist about his performance work. Giacinto Di Pietrantonio focuses on McCarthy's video/installation, "Pinocchio Pipehouse Householddilemma". The artist has juxtaposed a text by Jean-Paul Sartre with a screenplay from the TV serial "Bonanza", and the final section, the artist's writings, contains notes for performances and videos. The book is part of a series of studies of important artists of the late-20th century. Each title offers a comprehensive survey of the artist's work, providing analyses and multiple perspectives on contemporary art and its inspiration.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #332095 in Books
• Published on: 1996-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Customer Reviews

A fascinating and comprehensive survey of McCarthy's career.
Paul McCarthy is one of America's foremost contemporary artists. His work offers a challenging and provocative insight into the dark underbelly of consumer culture, family heirarchy and identity. Drawing upon popular forms of TV and literature he has produced a large body of work in sculpture, video, performance and photographic forms. This book covers all aspects of McCarthy's work from 1970 to the present day and includes details of his collaborative projects with Mike Kelley, such as "Heidi" and "Fresh Acconci". The book is exhaustive in it's scope, providing information on early the 1970's performances, his large scale sculptural works and the latest giant pieces unveiled in Germany last year. Beautifully illustrated throughout and featuring informative essays by leading critics this is a must have book for anyone interested in contemporary art and culture.