The first complete catalogue on John McCrackens work. John McCracken (Berkeley, California, 1934) is an internationally famous American artist known principally for what he defines as blocks, slabs, columns, planks. Basic, beautiful forms, neutral forms. The starting point for such neutral forms is the minimalist object or primary structure such as the cube or plank. Made in plywood and then covered in fibreglass and polyester resin and lacquered in bold colours, the neutral forms transform into objects that knowingly bring together Minimal Art trends with the colours of the automobile industry and the idea of a mental and immaterial space. McCraken, famous mainly for these minimalist, spiritual, enigmatic, irresistibly beautiful sculptures and paintings was then a prominent artist on the international artistic scene in the 1970s for his Mandala cycle of paintings.

The monumental Frauen with sawn-off limbs, distortions, bodies steam-rolled flat, in tantalising poses - ruthlessly exposed on steel work tables - resist any attempt to categorise their style into the canon of official art history.

"Over the last several years, collectors have come to the forefront of the art scene, becoming key figures, if not stealing the spotlight from curators and institutions. But speculation, stratospheric prices, opinionated leadership, and the spectacle of collecting are only some of the many facets of the current reality. For many collectors, contemporary art is essentially an aesthetic and intellectual adventure - thus the construction of each collection a personal journey and a singular statement. In an attempt to map the contours of this archipelago, the present volume gathers interviews with 40 collectors from Europe, the Americas, and Asia, revealing some recurring motivations while emphasizing differences of approach." --Book Jacket.

Thomas Schtte's first scale models in the 1980s presented rooms to live and work. While the atelier houses reflect the artist's own activity, the symbolic forms for bunkers, which reveal Schtte's sceptical view of things and his black humour, offer security and a place of retreat.Twenty years later, Schtte once again took up imaginary model architecture with light pavilions made out of wood and leftovers from his atelier, commercial buildings like petrol stations or car parks, as well as concert halls and event locations.While the first models remain rooted in a fictional world, the models of the One Man Houses from 2003 on were converted into reality.In 2007 he built a house for two French collectors, and in 2009 - following the Ferienhaus fr Terroristen - a pavilion-like house with glass walls as a possible design for new architecture as well as an oppositional praxis in our society.This publication provides a comprehensive survey of the architectural models from the first years to today's design projects.English and German text.

The Castello di Rivoli exhibition examines the Frauen series, extraordinary portrayals of women whose bodies are submitted to spatial and organic deformations. What emerges forcefully from this group of works is Schütte's ability to effect a true formal and imaginative revolution, not only with regard to the noble tradition of Western figurative sculpture but also to that of his own œuvre. The bronze and aluminium Frauen derive directly from some ceramic models chosen from the 120 different rough sketches realised between 1997 and 1999. For the first time ever, the 18 Frauen are presented together in the impressive spaces of the Manica Lunga, the former paintings gallery of the Savoys in the 17th century, measuring 6 metres by 146. The Frauen are accompanied by the complete series of their ceramic models and the 100 watercolours from the artist's private collection. At the Castello di Rivoli, the artist also presents two new bronze sculptures four metres high, called United Enemies, which greet the visitor as he approaches the entrance to the 18th-century castle.--www.nmnm.mc.

Crisis, malaise and social fragmentation are recurring themes in the representation of the middle classes. The volume, based on the results of an investigation into the forensic profession carried out with the contribution of the Bar Council of Florence, delves into the issue by placing itself in a line of studies that has recently regained vigour within the Italian and international sociological debate. By touching on a plurality of themes and using mixed investigation methods, the research has allowed the authors to verify how different employment situations translate into an unequal distribution of life chances and into different attitudes towards profession, politics and social life, allowing also to explore the role played by lawyers in change processes.