Viewers of contemporary art are often invited to
involve themselves actively in artworks, by entering
installations, touching objects, performing instructions
or clicking on interactive websites. Why have artists
sought to engage spectators in these new forms of
participation? In what ways does active participation
affect the viewer's experience and the status of the
artwork? Spanning a range of practices including kinetic
art, happenings, environments, performance,
installations, relational and new media art from the
1950s to the present, this critical anthology sheds
light on the history and specificity of artworks that
only come to life when you - the viewer - are invited to
'do it yourself.' The volume consists of fifteen essays
by art historians, critics and curators, which are
divided into three sections. Part I addresses the
emergence of spectator participation in the 1960s, while
Part II brings together in-depth case studies of
specific participatory practices in the 1960s, 1970s and
1990s, analysing the issues that they raise in their
very modes of operation.The more general critical essays
in Part III map out a range of theoretical approaches to
the 'do-it-yourself' artwork. Together, the three
sections provide invaluable historical perspectives and
theoretical tools for scholars, students, artists and
readers interested in contemporary art. Rather than a
specialist topic in the history of twentieth- and
twenty-first century art, the 'do-it-yourself' artwork
raises broader issues concerning the role of the viewer
in art, the status of the artwork and the
socio-political relations between art and its
contexts. |
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