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James Castle: A Retrospective

James Castle: A Retrospective
Library Shelf Location 18.CAST
Publication Date
Description James Castle (1899-1977) never learned to speak, read, or write, nor did he ever leave his native state of Idaho, and yet he created a wide range of extraordinary works that resonate with much of twentieth-century art. This book offers the first critical exploration of the many creative genres of this self-taught artist, who first came to notice in the 1950s and 1960s but has only recently been recognized by major museums.Lavishly illustrated with more than 300 full-colour reproductions and packaged with an original documentary DVD illuminating fascinating aspects of his life and art, this book examines Castle's drawings, colour-wash works, idiosyncratic cardboard and paper constructions, and word, sign, and symbol pieces. As a child he developed his favourite medium and method of working, mixing stove soot with saliva and applying this "ink" with sharpened sticks and cotton wads to such found materials as product packaging and discarded paper. These everyday materials have given his works a singular, immediate, and appealing natural quality.This engaging volume considers Castle's remarkable art from a variety of perspectives, examining his life, modes of depiction, working methods and materials, and the "visual poetry" of his text works. Ann Percy is curator of drawings at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
ISBN 9780300137309
Quantity 1
Pages 251 p. : ill. (some col.), col. map ; 31 cm.
Author Ann Percy
Formats DVD, Hardback
Publisher Yale University Press
Related Artist James Castle
Category Artist (relating to a single artist/collaborative team)
Artist's Nationality American (USA), Native American
Language English

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