Published by Aspen Art Press. Edited by Michelle Piranio. Foreword by Heidi Zuckerman Jacobson. Text by Klaus Ottmann, Franklin Sirmans, Philippe Vergne, Heidi Zuckerman Jacobson.
This volume offers a compelling examination of the surprising conceptual and visual correspondences between the works of these two pivotal artists known for their innovative practices. Klein (1928–1962) was a major figure in postwar art who opened up new possibilities for material, conceptual, and performative expression, often touching on the metaphysical. Hammons (born 1943) is a conceptual artist whose works in performance, installation, sculpture, printmaking, and other media confront contemporary realities with an often hard-hitting wit. This publication aims not to draw out any notion of influence or direct correlation between these bodies of work, but rather to elucidate a resonance between two artists who both engage transformative processes to invest the humblest of everyday materials with deep aesthetic significance.