Select delivery location
See All Buying Options
Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the authors

Diane Waldman
+ Follow
David Joselit
+ Follow
See all
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Jenny Holzer Hardcover – December 1, 2008

by Elizabeth A.T. Smith (Author), Jenny Holzer (Artist)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 19 ratings
See all formats and editions
For the past three decades, the influential American conceptual artist Jenny Holzer has been challenging viewers' assumptions about the world through language that conveys the multiplicity of often contradictory voices, opinions and attitudes that form the basis of contemporary society. Alternating between fact and fiction, public and private, the universal and the particular, Holzer's work offers an incisive social and psychological portrait of our times. During the last decade, Holzer has shown extensively in Europe but has been less visible in the United States--following a period of wide exposure and pervasive influence beginning in the late 1970s. This volume, which accompanies a major presentation of Holzer's work in various media from the 1990s onward at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, goes a long way towards rectifying this situation, and reintroduces her to the American audience at a timely political moment. Featuring several scholarly essays and an interview with the artist, this volume provides an overview of the work of one of the leading artists of the 80s generation.
Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. Print length
    128 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Hatje Cantz
  4. Publication date
    December 1, 2008
  5. Dimensions
    11.18 x 0.59 x 12.44 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    3775723013
  7. ISBN-13
    978-3775723015
  8. See all details
Next page
The Amazon Book Review
The Amazon Book Review
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Hatje Cantz; First Edition (December 1, 2008)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 128 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 3775723013
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-3775723015
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.65 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 11.18 x 0.59 x 12.44 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 19 ratings

About the authors

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Previous page
  1. Diane Waldman

    Diane Waldman

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

    See more on the author's page
  2. David Joselit

    David Joselit

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

    See more on the author's page
  3. Jenny Holzer

    Jenny Holzer

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

    See more on the author's page
Next page

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
19 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

L
5.0 out of 5 stars Softcover 1st ed.
Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2019
This ISBN is for the 1989 first edition of the Guggenheim monograph. There are enough differences in this and the updated 1997 edition to own both and not feel like a hoarder. The size, length and presentation are different, these pages are glossy. Both stand well on their own!
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Rachel Barenblat
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic coverage of a fantastic artist.
Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 1999
The book listed on this page, a monograph on Jenny Holzer by Phaidon Press, is fabulous. It contains information on Holzer's wide and influential art career, from her Truisms posters of the 'seventies to her electronic LED signs, carved stone benches, and virtual art pieces of the 'nineties.
This book is also unique, within the Holzer bibliography, because of the "Artist's Choice" section where Holzer provides excerpts from books and writings that have influenced her, along with explanations of why she's moved by them.
If you're interested in modern art, or women artists, this is a must-read
38 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Enigmatic Mermaid
5.0 out of 5 stars Jenny Holzer- Protect me from what I can't see
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2001
Have you ever stopped to think how many times we are bombarded by truisms everyday? Get this book and you will get a clue. In the Truisms series over exposure to banality reveals how numbed out we all are. Take a cliche like "Children are the hope to the future" and place beside "Children are the most cruel of all". We say and repeat these truisms but do we really realize that they are empty in themselves ? Do we perceive the contradictions ? How we mold reality to suit our needs ? Truisms sooth us with the cushioned feeling of the "generally accepted truth". Jenny Holzer literally splashes intimate thoughts, truisms, activist slogans over the landscape. These truths, half-truths and huge lies stare out at us in billboards, park benches like a conscience made physical. This is art made on the very border of reality and language.
13 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Cass
5.0 out of 5 stars Good book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 9, 2014
Verified Purchase
During my fd in fine art I have an allowance for books and went crazy buying any art book that took my fancy. I really enjoyed reading this book and it'll alway have a spot on my shelf.
Report
ME CANNELL
5.0 out of 5 stars Jenny Holzer book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
Bought as present - friend loved it
Report
Lingli Lu
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 10, 2015
Verified Purchase
thank you
Report
Michael Robinson
3.0 out of 5 stars Good if you want an in depth read on the artist
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 4, 2017
Verified Purchase
I was hoping for a simple list of her truisms with perhaps an explanation but this is more an in depth look at Jenny's art. This might suit other people better than myself. Difficult to really tell before buying. The book itself was in great condition.
One person found this helpful
 Report