
Francis Alys
Phaidon Press Ltd
Published on 18. June 2007
Book
Paperback/Softback
160 pages
978-0-7148-4321-6 (ISBN)
Description
Though primarily based in Mexico, Belgian artist Francis Alys (b. 1959) is a compulsive wanderer. Gaining international attention in the late 1990s, the works of Francis Alys (pronounced 'ah-leece') are based on his walks in various locations all over the world. Whether tracing the meandering Green Line in Jerusalem, interceding in the drift of the sand dunes outside in Lima, Peru, or documenting the varieties of people carting their wares around Mexico City, Alys examines current socio-political situations in specific urban sites, weaving his own fables into the tangled social fabric via performances, postcards, paintings, sketches, 'tourist' videos and a variety of other innovative media.
Francis Alys is represented by David Zwirner Gallery, 525 W 19th Street, New York 10011, susan@davidzwirner.com and Lisson Gallery, 52-54 Bell Street, London NW1 5DA, contact@lisson.co.uk
Francis Alys is represented by David Zwirner Gallery, 525 W 19th Street, New York 10011, susan@davidzwirner.com and Lisson Gallery, 52-54 Bell Street, London NW1 5DA, contact@lisson.co.uk
Reviews / Votes
On the Contemporary Artists Series"The boldest, best executed, and most far-reaching publishing project devoted to contemporary art. These books will revolutionize the way contemporary art is presented and written about."-Artforum
"The combination of intelligent analysis, personal insight, useful facts and plentiful pictures is a superb format invaluable for specialists but also interesting for casual readers, it makes these books a must for the library of anyone who cares about contemporary art."-Time Out
"A unique series of informative monographs on individual artists."-The Sunday Times
"Gives the reader the impression of a personal encounter with the artists. Apart from the writing which is lucid and illuminating, it is undoubtedly the wealth of lavish illustrations which makes looking at these books a satisfying entertainment."-The Art Book
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 290 mm
Width: 250 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
1000 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7148-4321-6 (9780714843216)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Russell Ferguson is Chairman of the Department of Art at the University of California, Los Angeles, and Adjunct Curator at the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, where he has organized the exhibitions 'Wolfgang Tillmans' (2006), 'The Undiscovered Country' (2004) and 'Christian Marclay' (2003).
Cuauhtemoc Medina is a writer and curator based in Mexico City. He is researcher at the Instituto de Investigaciones Esteticas at the National University of Mexico, Mexico City, and is Associate Curator, Latin American Art Collections, at Tate Modern, London. He has written on such artists as Santiago Sierra, Brian Jungen and Teresa Margolles, as well as on a number of historical subjects, including the Fluxus movement. He has also written extensively on the work of Francis Alys and has collaborated on several of the artist's most significant projects, including When Faith Moves Mountains (2002).
Jean Fisher (1942-2016) was the editor of the journal Third Text, the anthologies Global Visions: A New Internationalism in the Visual Arts (1994), Reverberations: Tactics of Resistance, Forms of Agency in Trans/cultural Practices (2000) and Over Here: International Perspectives on Art and Culture (2005, with Gerardo Mosquera). She was also the author of a book of essays, Vampire in the Text (2003), on contemporary art and culture. She also taught at Middlesex University and the Royal College of Art, London.
Cuauhtemoc Medina is a writer and curator based in Mexico City. He is researcher at the Instituto de Investigaciones Esteticas at the National University of Mexico, Mexico City, and is Associate Curator, Latin American Art Collections, at Tate Modern, London. He has written on such artists as Santiago Sierra, Brian Jungen and Teresa Margolles, as well as on a number of historical subjects, including the Fluxus movement. He has also written extensively on the work of Francis Alys and has collaborated on several of the artist's most significant projects, including When Faith Moves Mountains (2002).
Jean Fisher (1942-2016) was the editor of the journal Third Text, the anthologies Global Visions: A New Internationalism in the Visual Arts (1994), Reverberations: Tactics of Resistance, Forms of Agency in Trans/cultural Practices (2000) and Over Here: International Perspectives on Art and Culture (2005, with Gerardo Mosquera). She was also the author of a book of essays, Vampire in the Text (2003), on contemporary art and culture. She also taught at Middlesex University and the Royal College of Art, London.
Content
Interview - Critic and curator Russell Ferguson travels to Mexico City to walk the streets with the artist, discussing Alys's personal and artistic explorations along the way. * Survey - Cuauhtemoc Medina traces Alys's ongoing critique of urbanism and modern life from his studies at the architecture academy in Venice to his negotations with day-to-day life in Mexico City and finally to his emergence as an acclaimed artist of international scope. * Focus - Jean Fisher discusses When Faith Moves Mountains (2002), a 'project of geological displacement' whereby some 500 volunteers moved an enormous sand dune a few inches from its original position, one shovel-full at a time. * Artist's Choice - Augusto Monterroso's 'The Black Sheep' and 'The Two Tails, or the Eclectic Philosopher' (1969) are fables whose instant timelessness have made them classics throughout the Spanish-speaking world. * Artist's Writings - Alys discusses his own practices in texts which such evocative titles as 'As Long as I'm Walking', '10 Predicaments' and 'The Elements'. * Chronology and Bibliography