Bruce Nauman - by Constance M Lewallen & Dore Bowen (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

The first book devoted solely to Bruce Nauman's corridors and other architectural installations, Bruce Nauman: Spatial Encounters deftly explores the significance of these works in the development of his singular art practice, examining them in the context of the period and in relation to other artists like Dan Graham, Robert Morris, Paul Kos, and James Turrell.

Designed for viewer participation, Bruce Nauman's architectural installations often confound expectations and induce physical and psychological unease. The essays in this book consider these works, which begin in 1969 and continue into the 1970s and beyond, in terms of the physical, perceptual, and psychological pressures they exert on the participant. Three interlocking perspectives on the topic--Constance M. Lewallen's historical overview, Dore Bowen's case study of Nauman's 1970 Corridor Installation with Mirror--San Jose Installation (Double Wedge Corridor with Mirror), and a supplementary essay by Ted Mann on Nauman's drawings--provide a comprehensive and in-depth approach.

The book coincides with the major retrospective exhibition Bruce Nauman: Disappearing Acts at the Schaulager Museum, Basel, Switzerland (March 17-August 26, 2018) and the Museum of Modern Art and MoMA PS1, New York (October 21, 2018-March 17, 2019).

From the Back Cover

"This book is a must-have for fans of Bruce Nauman and art enthusiasts of all kinds. It is comprehensive and insightful and provides an exceptionally nuanced close reading of some of the most physically innovative and psychologically intense American artworks of the mid-twentieth century."--Lawrence Rinder, Director and Chief Curator, University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive

"Imagine a world where, as Bruce Nauman put it, you 'try to balance and can't.' Anxiety and disorientation lurk around the corner. You panic. Helpless, you try to escape. Instead, read this book: its lucid essays show why and how Nauman's architectural installations exemplify the haunting alienation of our social life."--Anne M. Wagner, Professor Emerita of Modern and Contemporary Art, University of California, Berkeley

Review Quotes

"Remarkable. . . . The three authors provide deeply researched and complimentary paths to thinking about what the different installations mean for the artwork. Thankfully, their thoughtful contributions are accompanied by a great many stunning images, allowing the reader to visually track Nauman's development over the course of more than five decades."

-- "Brooklyn Rail"

About the Author

Constance M. Lewallen is Adjunct Curator at the University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive. Her exhibitions include A Rose Has No Teeth: Bruce Nauman in the 1960s and surveys of numerous other artists, and she is the author of 500 Capp Street: David Ireland's House.

Dore Bowen is Associate Professor of Art History at San José State University. Her essays on postwar art are published in journals and anthologies such as A Companion to Contemporary Art since 1945 and Otherwise: Imagining Queer Feminist Art Histories.