Since the 1979 publication ofThe Writings of Robert Smithson, Robert Smithson's significance as a spokesman for a generation of artists has been widely acknowledged and the importance of his thinking to contemporary artists and art critics continues to grow. In addition to a new introduction by Jack Flam,The Collected Writingsincludes previously unpublished essays by Smithson and gathers hard-to-find articles, interviews, and photographs. Together these provide a full picture of his wide-ranging views on art and culture.
Robert Smithson(1938-1973), one of the most important artists of his generation, produced sculpture, earthworks, drawings, and paintings in addition to the writings collected here.Jack Flamis Distinguished Professor of Art History at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. HisMatisse on Art: Revised Edition(1995) is also available from California.
An argument could be made that Robert Smithson is at least as important as a thinker and critic as he is as an artist, and in the art history of the Seventies, his words are certain to be returned to and returned to. He is one of those figures whose thought at once defines and transcends his own time. Arthur C. Danto, author ofPlaying with the Edge: The Photographic Achievement of Robert Mapplethorpe
"The perfect book for someone who is interested in space, time, systems, engineering, and the nitty-gritty of life as an artist in the 20th century."
“Featuring more than 150 works including paintings, works on paper, essays, photographs, objects and films”