specific object / david platzker
presents
Art & Project Bulletins : 1968 - 1989
October 15 - January 25, 2008
Specific Object / David Platzker is pleased to announce the opening of the exhibition
Art & Project Bulletins : 1968 - 1989. The exhibition will be on view at Specific Object from October 15 through January 25, 2008.
Published between 1968 and 1989, Adriaan van Ravesteijn and Geert van Beijeren, the founders of Art & Project in Amsterdam, produced 156 individual bulletins by Bas Jan Ader, Carl Andre, Stephen Antonakos, Keith Arnatt, David Askevold, Gijs Bakker, John Baldessari, Robert Barry, Zadok Ben-David, Jaap Berghuis, Mel Bochner, Alighiero Boetti, Boezem, William Breuker, Marcel Broodthaers, Stanley Brouwn, Daniel Buren, Gianfredo Carmesi, Alan Charlton, Sandro Chia, Francesco Clemente, Roy Colmer, Adam Colton, Jan Commandeur, Tony Cragg, Enzo Cucchi, Hanne Darboven, Ad Dekkers, Jan Dibbets, Ger van Elk, Barry Flanagan, Hamish Fulton, Gilbert & George, Joris Geurts, Rainer Giese, Daan van Golden, Gruppe X, Ab van Hanegem, Douglas Huebler, W. Knoebel, Joseph Kosuth, William Leavitt, Emmy van Leersum, Sol LeWitt, Richard Long, Andrew Lord, Martin Maloney, Yutaka Matsuzawa, Bruce Mclean, Aldo van Nieuwelaar, Willy Orskov, Mimmo Paladino, Nicholas Pope, Charlotte Posenenske, Tomas Rajlich, David Robilliard, Stephen Rosenthal, Ulrich Rückriem, Allen Ruppersberg, Robert Ryman, Salvo, Han Schuil, Paul Schuitema, Jan Slothuber, Ed Sommer, Naomi Specter, Peter Struycken, Narcisse Tordoir, David Tremlett, Toon Verhoef, Emo Verkerk, Didier Vermeiren, Carel Visser, Leo Vroegindeweji, Lawrence Weiner, Ian Wilson, and Hideto Yamazaki.
Each bulletin was typically composed of four 29.5 x 21 cm. pages with a consistent cover design. The inside of the bulletin, however, was open to each artists' interpretation. They became projects produced specifically for the medium according to the whims of their creator. The bulletins were not simply exhibition announcements or recompilations of previous works; instead they emerged as stand alone pieces of original art issued in a continuous numbered series for twenty one years. The publication was best described by the paragraph that accompanied the first issuance of Bulletin 1:
Art & Project plans to bring you together with the ideas of artists, architects and technicians to discover an intelligent form for your living and working space. Art & Project invites you to participate in its exhibitions which will explore ways in which art, architecture and technology can combine with your own ideas.
This statement proved prophetic. As the bulletins and the gallery gained notoriety, it attracted the attentions of the Conceptual Art movement for whom the bulletin was a vehicle for conveying both art and idea to the viewer at minimal cost. When issued the bulletins had no value except for the ideas they contained; they were distributed through a free international mailing list or through the gallery itself. This allowed the artists a wider breadth of viewers and maximum of public exposure.
The bulletins contain original material in a sequence that was initially ordered by the artist but that the viewer can choose to digest non-sequentially. This elasticity lends itself well to the Lawrence Weiner quote "THEY (BOOKS) ARE PERHAPS THE LEAST IMPOSITIONAL MEANS OF TRANSFERRING INFORMATION FROM ONE TO ANOTHER (SOURCE)".
Some of the most influential figures from this period contributed a single Bulletin, while others chose to produce more: Barry executed four; Brouwn, seven; Dibbets, six; Fulton, three; Gilbert & George, four; Heubler, four; Sol LeWitt, five; Richard Long, seven and Allan Ruppersberg, two. While the majority of bulletins were strictly black and white, artists like Buren produced a transparent bulletin and LeWitt created one that folded into 48 squares. The history of the bulletins and their creators is also marred with tragedy: Bas Jan Ader's Bulletin 89 was mailed during the ocean voyage on which he lost his life.
The breadth of artists, subject matter and execution are the factors that make the bulletins stand out amongst other art produced within this period. The freedom given to the artists by Art & Project to express themselves is made clear in the unique rendering of each Bulletin. It propels the works beyond a two-dimensional piece of paper: they become a force unto themselves.
This exhibition at Specific Object will present the entire series of 156 bulletins, with all surfaces on view.
Originally produced in an unnumbered edition of 800 copies each, Specific Object in conjunction with 20th Century Art Archives, UK, will be offering complete archive sets of the Art & Project Bulletins. Issued in an edition of 50 strictly limited sets, each will contain 149 original Bulletins with additional 7 clearly marked reprints. The production of the reprints has been overseen by Adriaan van Ravesteijn, who worked with the original printer to ensure the reprints are of identical quality to their prototypes. Each set will also include a newly complete inventory of all the bulletins produced by Art & Project. This is the only complete listing of the bulletins available. Each set includes 4 original bulletins by Gilbert & George, of which Bulletin 47 is signed in red ink by the artists.
The price of the complete archive is $8,000 plus any applicable sales tax and delivery charges.
The exhibition catalogue
Art & Project Bulletins 1 - 156 : September 1968 - November 1989 is available at:
www.specificobject.com/Art_&_Project
A PDF of the complete exhibition checklist is available by
CLICKING HERE.
Read Roberta Smith's review of the exhibition by clicking
here.
This price is subject to change based upon availability.
Specific Object's hours are Monday - Friday 11 AM to 5 PM, or by appointment.
Specific Object is located at 601 West 26th Street / Floor 2M / Room M285, New York, New York 10001.
Telephone (212) 242-6253.
Specific Object's website is www.specificobject.com
For additional information regarding the exhibition or Specific Object please email David Platzker at
[email protected]
