Contemporary Art: A Very Short Introduction, 2nd edition

Julian Stallabrass

Jul 2021 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Corrie James

About this audiobook

Contemporary art has never been so popular-but the art world is changing. In a landscape of increasing globalization there is growing interest in questions over the nature of contemporary art today, and the identity of who is controlling its future. In the midst of this, contemporary art continues to be a realm of freedom where artists shock, break taboos, flout generally received ideas, and switch between confronting viewers with works of great emotional profundity and jaw-dropping triviality. In this Very Short Introduction Julian Stallabrass gives a clear view on the diverse and rapidly moving scene of contemporary art. Exploring art's striking globalization from the 1990s onwards, he analyzes how new regions and nations, such as China, have leapt into astonishing prominence, over-turning the old Euro-American dominance on aesthetics. Showing how contemporary art has drawn closer to fashion and the luxury goods market as artists have become accomplished marketers of their work, Stallabrass discusses the reinvention of artists as brands. This new edition also considers how once powerful art criticism has mutated into a critical and performative writing at which many artists excel.

About the author

Julian Stallabrass is senior lecturer in art history at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. He is the author of several books on art, including the highly controversial High Art Lite, and is a frequent contributor to publications, including the Evening Standard and the New Statesman.

Corrie James has worked on both sides of the Atlantic in theater, radio, and audiobooks. She credits growing up listening to the BBC for her love of the spoken word.