ronanmcd's review against another edition
5.0
I wanted to like this book more than i did. I wanted to like it as much as i like Shonibare's art. But i didn't like it. The essays are fluff.
One states the reader and viewer must be aware of Foucault's and Derrida's work to proceed. What kind of art can only be appreciated after one has been through a required reading list?
The essays repeat ad nauseum the origins of the Dutch wax cloth. This is interesting and crucial to our understanding of Shonibare's work, but it's not all his work is. Yet the essays consistently use this as a foundation for all exploration of his themes.
The distance between the mangled, tortured academic prose in the essays and the few actual quotes from the artist is vast. He's a supremely smart guy, he talks brass tacks about his work and life. He doesn't view it on another plain, behind the gatekeepers of academia. He's real.
One states the reader and viewer must be aware of Foucault's and Derrida's work to proceed. What kind of art can only be appreciated after one has been through a required reading list?
The essays repeat ad nauseum the origins of the Dutch wax cloth. This is interesting and crucial to our understanding of Shonibare's work, but it's not all his work is. Yet the essays consistently use this as a foundation for all exploration of his themes.
The distance between the mangled, tortured academic prose in the essays and the few actual quotes from the artist is vast. He's a supremely smart guy, he talks brass tacks about his work and life. He doesn't view it on another plain, behind the gatekeepers of academia. He's real.
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