The Box

The new artist book by Paul McCarthy (1945, Salt Lake City) presents one of the artist's most significant works: The Box (1999). The work is a displaced sculpture of the entire McCarthy studio. Unobtrusive from the outside, a wooden structure fabricated like a shipping crate with four holes indicating the windows and doors in McCarthy's actual studio, the interior reveals an overwhelming diversity of objects thus creating an intimate portrait of the artist's mindscape. The contents of The Box are the actual items from McCarthy's studio in Los Angeles, California, which contains approximately three thousand objects, from a steel cabinet to a pencil, drawings, and works of art. Only one thing is wrong, the box is tilted ninety degrees to the side, its contents, fixed to its surfaces, appearing to defy gravity and mock the viewer's perception of being face up. This radical displacement is repeated in the catalog design, thus creating an object that functions as yet another haptic investment. The disorientation aesthetic is reflected in the volume, which was developed in close consultation with the artist. Language: English Pages: 250 pp. Binding: Hardcover Publisher: Hatje Cantz Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 31 x 3 x 21.5 cm Conservation: Due to its age it may present marks and slight damage