Drawing in the Twenty-First Century ─ The Politics and Poetics of Contemporary Practice

As a response to the ubiquity of drawing in contemporary consciousness and a corresponding dearth of critical engagement with the medium, these collected essays provide original interpretations of artistsa€? drawing today. Questions of process, politics, scale, and community raised in the work of the diverse group of artists are situated within the historic discourse on drawing and demonstrate the extent to which contemporary practice challenges previous definitions of the medium. From the room-encompassing drawings of Monika Grzymala and Barbara Bernstein or Sophie Callea€?s expansive exploration of the Jerusalem eruv to Andrea Bowersa€?s graphite renditions of protest to Ellsworth Kellya€?s proposal for a memorial to September 11, the essays explore the implications of drawingsa€? departure from the confines of a sheet of paper. Essential reading for both the academic and general audience, this book provides in-depth discussions of artists and projects that have never been treated in a sustained, analytical way; each essay will interest the wider contemporary art audience, as well as students of drawing. Taken as a whole, the volume represents a pertinent and stimulating engagement with issues of paramount importance to our understanding of contemporary art and its place in museums, galleries, and the public sphere.

Elizabeth A. Pergam is on the faculty of Art Business and American Fine and Decorative Art, Sothebya€?s Institute of Art, New York, USA.