ART-PRESENTATION:Ed Ruscha, Prints and Photographs-Books & Co

Two exhibitions that explore Ed Ruscha’s innovation and legacy across printed media are on presentation at the Gagosian Gallery in Paris. “Prints and Photographs” and “Books & Co.” that presents Ruscha’s legendary artist books together with those of more than 70 contemporary artists from all over the world-from Russia to Japan to the Netherlands-who have responded directly and diversely to his inspiration. Some of the books are installed so that viewers can browse their pages.

By Efi Michalarou
Photo: Gagosian Gallery Archive

“Prints and Photographs” surveys Ruscha’s prints of the past forty years, together with rarely seen photographs produced since 1959, providing an in-depth examination of the unrestricted gestures that fuel his assiduous art. Ranging freely and dexterously across traditional, unconventional, or sometimes even comestible materials, Ruscha’s prints are a fluid forum for the spirited investigation of what a limited-edition artwork can be. His absorption and re-thinking of the requirements of each graphic procedure and format result in step-by step transformations, a process that echoes the eternal return of the subjects that make up his broader oeuvre. “Books & Co.” Inspired by the unassuming books that he found in street stalls during a trip to Europe, in 1962 Ruscha published his first artist book, Twentysix Gasoline Stations under his own imprint, National Excelsior Press. A slim, cheaply produced volume, then priced at $3.50, Twentysix Gasoline Stations is exactly what its title suggests: twenty-six photographs of gas stations with captions indicating their brand and location, just like works of art. Initially, the book met with poor reception, and was even rejected by the Library of Congress for its “unorthodox form and supposed lack of information”. However, over time it acquired cult status, and by the 1980s it was hailed as one of the first truly modern artist books. Ruscha followed this up with a succession of similarly self-evident and deadpan books.

 Info: Ed Rusca, Gagosian Gallery, 4 rue de Ponthieu 75008 Paris, Duration: 12/3-7/5/15, Days & Hours: Tue-Sat 11:00-19:00, www.gagosian.com