Photography Transformed: The Metropolitan Bank and Trust Collection

by Klaus Kertess, Metropolitan Bank & Trust

Overview

Over the past 30 years, photography has revolutionized the traditional fine arts, and no collection better documents this dramatic transformation than that of the Metropolitan Bank & Trust. Featuring conceptual photographic works by almost 200 artists, ranging from Andy Warhol and Robert Rauschenberg to Cindy Sherman, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Andreas Gursky, and Matthew Barney, the collection is the most comprehensive of its kind, public or private, in the world.

Through more than 500 full-color reproductions and a groundbreaking analysis by critic Klaus Kertess, Photography Transformed surveys this oustanding assemblage. Exploring subjects such as the influence of 1960s conceptual art on contemporary photography and the impact of video and film on still imagery, it places the works in historical context. Much more than a mere overview, this ambitious, insightful volume seeks to illustrate how and why the medium of photography has claimed modern art's center stage.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780810910058
Publisher:	ABRAMS
Publication date:	03/28/2002
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	9.82(w) x 11.32(h) x 1.25(d)
Age Range:	13 - 18 Years

Editorial Reviews

Adding to an expanding bibliography on "photo-based" artwork, this volume showcases a corporate art collection assembled with a keen eye and thoughtful intelligence. However, those seeking a better understanding of the photography illustrated here may find this book frustrating; this current within the art world still awaits a really comprehensive survey that combines historical perspective and critical analysis with fine illustrations. Still, readers will be introduced to many unfamiliar names among these full-color plates one of the genuine excitements here is that so many of the works are recent, often produced within the last three years. More familiar artists, such as Cindy Sherman, Robert Rauschenberg, and Matthew Barney, are also featured. Curator and art critic Kertess's opening 25-page essay offers tantalizingly brief descriptions of the concerns and work processes of the artists; only the first portion really addresses how photography dramatically expanded beyond the single print to encompass computer-based work, film/video stills, and seriality and to merge with sculpture, painting, and drawing. Recommended for larger art collections. Michael Dashkin, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, New York Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

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