Indepth Arts News:

"A Book About Death"
2009-09-10 until 2009-09-22
Emily Harvey Foundation Gallery
New York, NY, USA United States of America

The Emily Harvey Foundation is pleased to present A Book About Death, a sprawling, collaborative unbound "book" on the subject of death at the Emily Harvey Foundation Gallery in New York. The opening, on Thursday, September 10, 2009, one day shy of 9/11, brings together hundreds of artists in a global exhibition that honors the late artist Ray Johnson (1927-1995), whose own work inspired this exhibition; Emily Harvey (1941-2004); and the artists themselves, who have presented their unique visions of the subject through combinations of art, photography, and text. Featured in this exhibition is Virginia Milici who displays her work in a Free Portfolio at absolutearts.com.

Conceived and organized by Matthew Rose, a Paris-based American artist, A Book About Death is comprised of artists' postcards from original art created specifically for the exhibit. These pieces collectively form the pages of the "book." While many of the artists involved in the exhibition are internationally known – Yoko Ono, Eric Andersen, Peter Schuyff, Rodney Alan Greenblat – all of the artists share the stage equally. Each artist has contributed 500 postcards to the exhibit, and visitors to the gallery are encouraged to take "pages" away with them to create their own book about death. The exhibit is thus designed to "disappear" on its own schedule as people attend the exhibit.

"Ray Johnson is part of the history and spirit of The Emily Harvey Gallery, now The Emily Harvey Foundation," explains Christian Xatrec, EHF NYC director. "Taking the title from Ray Johnson, Matthew Rose's A Book About Death project refers to Ray’s groundbreaking-groundbreaking-work in the ephemeral, expanded field of correspondence art. However, this show sets those key Johnsonian concepts on a new course, in sync with the evolving interests of the Emily Harvey Foundation program today. The developing mission of the Foundation, and Rose's show, refuse the notion of hierarchy and the buttressing of institutional framings."  read more