Understand Contemporary Art: A Teach Yourself Guide

Book excerpt: Unravel the contemporary art scene Whether you love it or loathe it, contemporary art is bound to provoke a reaction. Is it all about shock and sensation? Does it have to be either profound or trivial? Is the contemporary art market over-inflated and ready to burst or is it still soaring? Teach Yourself Contemporary Art delves deep into the contemporary art scene, asking all of these questions and more. It begins by putting contemporary art into context, considering its pre-history and development and moves on to explore the different forms of contemporary art including installation, land and environment art and video, film and digital media. The key personalities, recurrent themes and controversial competitions are all discussed in detail, as is the changing role of museums and galleries and the contemporary art market. Whether you want to hold your own at the snootiest of arty parties or need to study art as part of a course, this book is an objective guide that uncovers all.