The Art of Work
Luis Camnitzer — Thinking About Art Thinking
May 7th, 2015
"Trueartsupposedlytakesformin anareathatisconsideredunreachable.It’slocated between consciousnessandtheunconsciousandissubjecttomagical interpretations."
"Or is it where cognition has to be served and needs the development of complex approaches to knowledge—of connecting what is presumed to be non-connectable—so that nothing may die submerged in conventionality and stereotypes?"
"All this makes me prefer to view art not as a means of production but as a form of thinking — art thinking, in fact. It makes me see that a textbook is a monologue that transfers information, and that fiction is dialogical because it demands empathy."
Luis Camnitzer (b.1937) is a German-born Uruguayan artist and writer who moved to New York in 1964. He was at the vanguard of 1960s Conceptualism, working primarily in printmaking, sculpture, and installations. Camnitzer’s artwork explores subjects such as social injustice, repression, and institutional critique. His humorous, biting, and often politically charged use of language as art medium has distinguished his practice for over four decades. http://www.alexandergray.com/artists/luis-camnitzer/