Books by Zo� Ryan
In a Cloud, in a Wall, in a Chair: Six Modernists in Mexico at Midcentury
by Zo� Ryan
Expanding our understanding of Mexico’s important role in the story of modern art and design through the works of six important women artists and designers
This stunning book unites for the first time the pioneering work of six artists and designers: Clara Porset, Lola Álvarez Bravo, Anni Albers, Ruth Asawa, Cynthia Sargent, Sheila Hicks. Inspired by both local traditions and modern methods, these women made art that reflected and contributed to Mexico’s rich artistic landscape at the height of the modern period. Their work—which included furniture design, jewelry, photography, photomurals, prints, sculpture, and textiles—was rooted in modernism and grounded in abstraction. This constellation of like-minded practitioners shared an affinity for Mexico, a country all lived in or visited between the 1940s and the 1970s. In bringing their works together, this book offers an entirely new lens on modernism in Mexico.
Exploring the artistic culture of the country’s postrevolutionary period, this book contains reproductions from the exhibition catalogue—no longer in print—that accompanied Clara Porset’s groundbreaking 1952 exhibition in Mexico City Art in Daily Life as well as stunning illustrations of each artist’s work. Essays written by an international team of esteemed scholars tell a more complete and nuanced story of Mexico’s role as a center of modern art and design.
Distributed for the Art Institute of Chicago
Exhibition Schedule:
The Art Institute of Chicago
(September 6, 2019–January 12, 2020)
Copies
No copies available.
As Seen: Exhibitions that Made Architecture and Design History
by Zo� Ryan
Exhibitions have long played a crucial role in defining disciplinary histories. This fascinating volume examines the impact of eleven groundbreaking architecture and design exhibitions held between 1956 and 2006, revealing how they have shaped contemporary understanding and practice of these fields. Featuring written and photographic descriptions of the shows and illuminating essays from noted curators, scholars, critics, designers, and theorists, As Seen: Exhibitions that Made Architecture and Design History explores the multifaceted ways in which exhibitions have reflected on contemporary dilemmas and opened up new processes and ways of working. Providing a fresh perspective on some of the most important exhibitions of the 20th century from America, Europe, and Japan, including This Is Tomorrow, Expo ’70, and Massive Change, this book offers a new framework for thinking about how exhibitions can function as a transformative force in the field of architecture and design.
Distributed for the Art Institute of Chicago
Copies
No copies available.
David Adjaye: Form, Heft, Material
by Okwui Enwezor, Peter Allison, Zo� Ryan
The first in-depth analysis of the stunning designs of one of the world’s most captivating and prominent architects
Born in Tanzania, David Adjaye (b. 1966) is rapidly emerging as a major international figure in architecture and design—and this stunning catalogue serves only to cement his role as one of the most important architects of our time. His expanding portfolio of important civic architecture, public buildings, and urban planning commissions spans Europe, the United States, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. He transforms complex ideas and concepts into approachable and innovative structures that respond to the geographical, ecological, technological, engineering, economic, and cultural systems that shape the practice of global architecture. The publication of this compendium of work and essays coincides with the scheduled opening of Adjaye’s National Museum of African American History and Culture on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Adjaye’s completed work in the United States includes the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, a pair of public libraries in D.C., and several private residences. He is also known for his collaborations with artists, most recently with the British painter Chris Ofili (b. 1968).
Following an introduction by Zoë Ryan, Adjaye writes on his current and future work, with subsequent essays by an extraordinary cadre of architectural scholars on Adjaye’s master plans and urban planning, transnational architecture, monuments and memorials, and, finally, the forthcoming museum in D.C. Portfolios of Adjaye’s work thread throughout this comprehensive volume.
Distributed for the Art Institute of Chicago and Haus der Kunst
Exhibition Schedule:
Haus der Kunst, Munich
(01/30/15–06/28/15)
The Art Institute of Chicago
(09/19/15–01/03/16)
Copies
No copies available.