What we want is free : critical exchanges in recent art / edited by Ted Purves and Shane Aslan Selzer.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Purves, Ted, 1964-2017.

Selzer, Shane Aslan, 1977-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Generosity in art.

Social exchange.

Interactive art.

Artists and community.

Physical Description:

x, 308 pages ; 23 cm

Edition:

Second Edition.

Place of Publication:

Albany : State University of New York Press, [2014]

Summary:

This revised edition of What We Want Is Free examines a twenty-year history of artistic productions that both model and occupy the various forms of exchange within contemporary society. From shops, gifts, and dinner parties to contract labor and petty theft, contemporary artists have used a variety of methods that both connect participants to tangible goods and services and, at the same time, offer critiques of and alternatives to global capitalism and other forms of social interaction. Examples of these various projects include the creation of free commuter bus lines and medicinal plant gardens, the distribution of such services as free housework or computer programming, and the production of community media projects such as free commuter newspapers and democratic low-wattage radio stations. Like the first edition, the second edition includes a detailed survey of artists' projects from around the globe, as well as critical essays and artists' texts that explore the underlying social history and contemporary issues that further inform our reading of these works. This new edition also features a new introduction and additional chapters on the relation of exchange practices to democracy, the commons, object-oriented philosophy, and an examination of the impact of ongoing globalization on the economics of artists' projects. It also features a significantly expanded scope for the project histories, including work from the past decade and a new section dedicated to artist-initiated organizations and innovative models for new institutions. Book jacket.

Contents:

From Markets to Lobbies: Considerations of Objects, Exchanges, and Value

The Handbook for Critical Exchanges in Recent Art

Actors and Audiences: Generosity and Social Aesthetics in Praxis.

Notes:

Revised and expanded edition of What we want is free: generosity and exchange in recent art. 2005.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781438453132

1438453132

9781438453149

1438453140

OCLC:

863382304