Since 1993
From The Publisher
This new interpretation of the structure and meaning of the Happenings produced by Allan Kaprow (1927-2006) and Claes Oldenburg (b. 1929) in the late 1950s and 1960s sheds light on the context, theoretical framework, and working practice unique to this groundbreaking artistic form. Drawing on extensive archival research and including never-before-published drawings by Oldenburg, Robert E. Haywood describes the dialogue - at times contentious - between these two artists about the direction of the Happenings and modern art in general. Through a comprehensive analysis of these often overlooked works, it becomes clear that the Happenings - born in the midst of Cold War tensions and an increased uneasiness with the direction society was taking - challenged the traditional definitions of art in innovative new ways and were a critical component in the development of the art of the 20th century.
Robert E. Haywood, Allan Kaprow and Claes Oldenburg: Art, Happenings, and Cultural Politics
(New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2017)
About the Author:
Robert E. Haywood is an art historian of modern and contemporary art, curator, and publisher. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He has taught art history at the College of William and Mary, Hunter College, MIT, John’s Hopkins University and other institutions. He has held residential fellowships at the Center for Advanced Studies in the Visual Arts, Smithsonian Institution, Getty Research Institute and Clark Art Institute. He was previously Deputy Director of the Contemporary Museum, Baltimore. He is a magazine publisher, including Annapolis Home Magazine, a magazine of architecture, landscape architecture and design.
From The Critics...
“The book is meticulously researched, drawing on the personal archives of the two artists, to which the author had unprecedented access. Because happenings are not meant to last, this is "an art of the archive, available for study, re-creation, or inspiration for others." With its sophisticated observations grounded in art theory but written without expectation of prior knowledge, this is a book that anyone could enjoy.” T. Nygard, CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, Dec. 2017