Magritte and Contemporary Art: The Treachery of Images [Hardcover]

Los Angeles County Museum of Art has a hit on its hands! 'Magritte And Contemporary Art: The Treachery of Images' is one of the most delightful and intelligent exhibitions to be mounted in a long time. Not only does the exhibition pay homage to Rene Magritte with some fifty examples of his paintings, but creatively juxtaposes the works of contemporary artists who in one way or another have been profoundly influenced by Magritte, if not by his imagery and facile wit, but by his impact on the art scene since his death in 1967. Stephanie Barron and Michel Draguet have made a museum experience that defies visual imagination and that feeling is fully transmitted to this superb catalogue.

With an informative introduction by popular artist Ed Ruscha and articles by Thierry de Duve, Draguet, Pepe Karmel and Dickran Tashjian this richly colorful volume investigates the influence of the ever-popular surrealist painter on such luminaries of the art world as Jasper Johns, Ed Ruscha, Vija Celmins, Joseph Kosuth, Sherrie Levine, Richard Artschwager, Jeff Koons, Martin Kippenberger, Jim Shaw, Raymond Pettibon, Robert Gober and Marcel Broodthaers. The side-by-side addition of works by these artists in tandem with comments from them makes for delicious reading and viewing.

The design of the hefty volume is superb, maintaining the sophisticated ambience of the show itself. No matter the readers' relationship to art, this is a magical volume that is endlessly entertaining and informative. A very fine gift for art lovers! Grady Harp, November 06

Magritte is possibly the most influencial artist -along with Warhol- of the second half of the XXth century. This book, a catalogue for a ground-breaking exhibition held at the LACMA in 2006, thoroughly and vividly studies this influence by confronting his work to those of many of today's best artists (Jasper Johns, Ed Rusha, Vija Celmins and many more). All of them, either through their works or through the interviews carried out on the occasion of that show and published in this book, acknowledge their debt to the Belgian master who taught them to see in another way. The lesson to be drawn from this book is indeed that what we see may not be what we see, that the obvious may not be so and that the ones who can best make us understand this are the artists themselves.

A treasure trove of illustrations, many of works belonging to private collections, enhance the already high quality of the text.

Good insights, written by a number of writers, on the art of Magritte. Some articles more insightful than others; some easier to understand than others. Covers why he is important and how he's influenced other contemporary artists. Overall, thumbs up.