Aernout Mik (Museum of Modern Art, New York Exhibition Catalogues)

Dutch artist Aernout Miks moving-image installations meld filmmaking, sculpture and architecture into experiences that are at once compelling, unsettling, peculiar and plausible. The artist designs and constructs architectural spaces that hold his moving images, making the viewers physical relationship to his work a critical component of the overall experience. By interrogating the most basic ideas of narrative and reality and rejecting classical cinematic ideals, Mik creates works that are rich in allusion but subversive of codes. Published to accompany the artists first US retrospective, this volume is a vivid exploration of Miks work and process. Laurence Kardish, MoMAs Senior Curator in the Department of Film, discusses the unique, creative aspects of Miks installations that extend the traditional boundaries of media, while Michael Taussig, professor of anthropology at Columbia University, investigates how the artists work changes the way we see reality while reinforcing the norms of visual culture. Abundantly illustrated with stills and the artists own drawings of works in the exhibition, Aernout Mik features detailed descriptions of the installations, an exhibition history and a bibliography, making it the most comprehensive volume about Mik and his work available in English.