Fifteen artists take on the challenge of marketing themselves.
In his review of Norman Mailer's 1959 book "Advertisments for Myself", Gore Vidal wrote: "Until very recently the artist was a magician who did his magic in public view but kept himself and his effects a matter of mystery." Wondering how far the art of self-promotion has come since then, we asked 15 artists to promote themselves in these pages. The result is reassuring to me. Rather than publicize some kind of inflated ego, many opted for a more intimate, humorous or social approach. At a time when certain extremes of art market are derailing our attention, these pages remind us that art remains a tool for awareness and conviviality. As the 'curator' of this project - I use the term loosely, as nowadays people are asked to curate anything from a dinner to a funeral - I could not have better advertisments for myself than these pages, which, mingled together, offer magic, mystery and some healthy and funny forms of vanity. by Francesco Bonami NYTimes.com
CAROL BOVE is known for her assemblages of found objects. Her ad shows the first piece in a new series of work that combines constructed photography and collage.
RYAN GANDERhas dressed gallery invigilators in embroidered tracksuits and given a lecture series as part of his conceptual work, but here chose to promote the art school he is raising money to open in a Victorian building in Suffolk, England.
RACHEL FEINSTEIN was inspired for her ad by the ‘‘cringeworthy and nostalgic feeling’’ brought on by looking at her high school yearbook, which included a clipping from a magazine of herself as a young fashion model.
FRANCESCO VEZZOLI‘‘I immediately felt that it would be hilarious to see a real/fake prostitute ad in the pages of the most respected newspaper in the world.’’
JENNY HOLZERhas used text since the 1970s in her art, which has taken forms including T-shirts, plaques and LED signs. In 2004, she started to source material from declassified government documents made available to the public through the Freedom of Information Act. ‘‘I live in the N.S.A.’s collection,” she wrote.
DAN COLEN is known for his abstract paintings and sculptures that incorporate low-grade materials such as bubble gum and trash.
ED ATKINS works primarily with high-definition video and with text to subvert the conventions of moving image and literature.
PAWEL ALTHAMER is known for his experimental sculptures and socially collaborative work. His ad features a self-portrait (‘‘not particularly successful,’’ as he writes in the top right corner) and portraits of him made by his youngest son and wife.
RIRKRIT TIRAVANIJAis a conceptual artist whose installations have included offering visitors Thai food cooked on site, making a facsimile of his apartment, creating a pirate television station and setting up a T-shirt print shop.
KORAKRIT ARUNANONDCHAIrecently created an installation designed to feel like a concept store for a lifestyle company whose first product is soap. ‘‘The ad is for the soap,’’ he wrote, and ‘‘depicts a moment of freedom and acceptance for oneself.’’
CAMILLE HENROTchallenges the linear transcription of Western history through videos, films and reworked images. Her ad, which features a photograph of her at 17 climbing, along with a list of peaks she has summited, is ‘‘a sort of logo, as if the vita contemplativa were a brand.’’
PHILIPPE PARRENOis an artist and filmmaker. About his ad he writes: ‘‘It is alive / It hides us from the mechanism of its movement and tricks us into thinking that it is organic.’’
SHIRANA SHAHBAZImakes photographs that explore the relationship between images and their surfaces.
TINO SEHGAL makes what he has described as ‘‘constructed situations.’’
