Tate Contemporary Art Decoded

What is contemporary art, and how did art come to be what it is today? How can we understand what a work of art means; and can't just about anything be called art these days? Contemporary Art Decoded takes ten key questions about contemporary art and uses them to what you're looking at, how it works, and why it matters. Steering clear of jargon, this book digs deep into the core ideas and concepts behind the art. It features some work you'll recognise, and some you won't, from some of the most exciting artists working today, such as Olafur Eliasson, Anish Kapoor, Yayoi Kusama and Zanele Muholi. This book is guaranteed to make your next trip to a gallery more rewarding. Chapters include: - What is contemporary art? - Where did it come from? - Where do you draw the line? - Does it matter who makes it? - Does it have to mean something? - Can anything be art? - What about art for art's sake? - Has it all been done before? - Does it have to be so serious? - What's next?

In the two centuries that photography has been practical, it has created a means of communication , the understanding of which is essential to anyone navigating this very visual world. From Daguerre's early images to the real-life sharing of Instagram, photography has never really been "the truth," though nor is it necessarily dishonest. It is ambiguous, complicated and subjective, fleeting and lasting at the same time. This book will introduce the best examples and show you how you can 'read' every image.

Introducing readers to the architecture of the art gallery Tate Modern, this book examines the part Tate Modern plays in British and global cultural life. It includes entries on over 120 artists and explanations of key terms in art and museology, and provides an introduction to the business of displaying contemporary art.

Art Now at Tate Britain provides an important platform for contemporary art, giving vital exposure to artists at an early stage of their career. The wide-ranging programme responds to developments in contemporary practice by British artists, and artists living and working in Britain. Documenting over two years of Art Now projects, this book offers fully-illustrated texts on twenty-seven of the most interesting artists working in Britain today. A round-table discussion between critics, curators and artists contextualises the programme alongside developments within the art world, offering a unique guide to current practice.

"How many times have you read the caption next to a work of art in a gallery, or a review of a contemporary art exhibition in a magazine and found yourself none the wiser? For many, the language in which modern art is described can be even more mystifying than the art itself. Now, a fully updated and expanded edition of the bestselling Tate Guide to Modern Art Terms offers a clear and reliable guide through the confusing terrain, with more than 450 pithy entries on the full range of modern and contemporary art. Drawing on the expertise of the most visited modern art gallery in the world, the book provides a comprehensive, authoritative and completely up-to-date resource for gallery-goers, art students and general readers alike, comprehensive in scope but small enough to fit into a bag or pocket. From Abstract Expressionism and Body Art through to Young British Artists (YBAs) and Group Zero, the book ranges in time from the dawn of Impressionism through to the digital age. Every term -- whether a theme, movement, medium or practice -- is defined with clarity and precision, with new entries on a broad range of subjects including Aesthetics, Afrofuturism, Chance, Ethnography, Identity Politics, Taller Gráfica Popular and the Uncanny. International in scope, and now with more than 60 illustrations, this is the perfect companion for all those wanting to increase their understanding and appreciation of modern and contemporary art." -- Publisher's description.

Who gets to say what counts as contemporary art? Artists, critics, curators, gallerists, auctioneers, collectors, or the public? Revealing how all of these groups have shaped today’s multifaceted definition, Terry Smith brilliantly shows that an historical approach offers the best answer to the question: What is Contemporary Art? Smith argues that the most recognizable kind is characterized by a return to mainstream modernism in the work of such artists as Richard Serra and Gerhard Richter, as well as the retro-sensationalism of figures like Damien Hirst and Takashi Murakami. At the same time, Smith reveals, postcolonial artists are engaged in a different kind of practice: one that builds on local concerns and tackles questions of identity, history, and globalization. A younger generation embodies yet a third approach to contemporaneity by investigating time, place, mediation, and ethics through small-scale, closely connective art making. Inviting readers into these diverse yet overlapping art worlds, Smith offers a behind-the-scenes introduction to the institutions, the personalities, the biennials, and of course the works that together are defining the contemporary. The resulting map of where art is now illuminates not only where it has been but also where it is going.

Unpacking the history of performance art and celebrating the work of contemporary practitioners--a must-read for both art lovers and students alike Stunningly beautiful, deeply puzzling, powerfully moving, or intensely unsettling--performance art can evoke a wide variety of responses. In this important survey, Catherine Wood, one of the world's leading curators and writers in this field, provides the broadest and most up-to-date insight into the subject yet published. Wood proposes performance not as a genre separate from object-making but as a medium that has profoundly influenced the shape of contemporary art. From the spectacular forms of intimacy performed by Marina Abramović to the painting processions initiated by Ei Arakawa and the social activism of Tania Bruguera, hugely divergent practices have emerged in the past 30 years that embrace the worlds of sculpture and painting, spectacle, and protest. Shifting the focus from "I" to "We" and then "It," Performance in Contemporary Art is divided into sections that examine the perspective of the individual, the social, and the object. Wood looks at histories of performance through the lens of contemporary practitioners: the Japanese Gutai group in the 1950s, Brazilian neo-concretism in the 1960s, and the feminist performance at Womanhouse in the United States in the 1970s are key examples of historical precedents that have been revisited, reformed, or rejected by contemporary artists in the 21st century.