BOOK:John Baldessari-Catalogue Raisonné vol. 6, Yale University Press

The book is the sixth and final volume of the catalogue raisonné project  and features over 360 works made by John Baldessari between 2011 and 2019. Here, Baldessari continues his longstanding tradition of borrowing from artists as varied as David Hockney, Giotto, Gustave Courbet, Maria Lassnig, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Giorgio Morandi, and Jackson Pollock.  Many of the works in this volume are a testament to the artist’s fascination and engagement with art from previous eras.  In one example, Baldessari’s 2012 series “Double Bill” combines scenes from pairs of paintings, such as a Willem de Kooning face atop a Jean Dubuffet body, with the words, “…And Dubuffet” painted beneath: Baldessari is effectively collaborating with artists he has revered for years. This volume also surveys Baldessari’s complete film and video output, from 1968 to 2004, as well as the artist’s books he made, from 1972 to 2019. Additionally, an appendix catalogues works, mostly pre-1974, that were unknown at the time Volume 1 was published. Volume 1 of the catalogue, covering the years 1956 to 1974, was published in 2012. Volume 2: 1975–1986 was completed in 2013, followed by Volume 3: 1987–1993 in 2016. Volume 4: 1994–2004 was released in 2017, and Volume 5: 2005–2010 in 2019. All  volumes were published by Yale University Press in association with Marian Goodman Gallery. Volume 6, the last in the series, is currently being prepared and it’s expected delivery date is February 2021. -Dimitris Lempesis