Bridget Riley: Past into Present

Riley has been working on geometric forms since 1961, focusing on lines, circles, curves, and squares arranged across a surface. Her Measure by Measure series is her most extensive body of work to date, and she has expanded into a new, darker color palette. This sense of dynamism was explored in her earliest black-and-white paintings, which established the basis of her enduring formal vocabulary. In 2020, she returned to black-and-white lozenges, adjusting the orientation of each shape to create a new visual sensation. This monograph features new scholarship on the artist by art historian Éric de Chassey.

Format: Hardback
Length: 80 pages
Publication date: 16 March 2023
Publisher: David Zwirner

I am frequently asked, "What is your objective?" And I must honestly admit that I am unable to provide a straightforward response. My artistic approach is more akin to a journey of discovery than a clear destination. I work "from something rather than "towards something."

Since 1961, Riley has dedicated himself exclusively to creating seemingly straightforward geometric forms, such as lines, circles, curves, and squares, arranged across a surface, be it a canvas, wall, or paper, following an internal logic. The resulting compositions actively engage the viewer, sometimes evoking sensations of vibration and movement.

In the present selection, Riley takes her Measure by Measure series, her most extensive body of work to date, into a new, darker color palette. Once again, she challenges our perception and has a profound effect on our visual senses.

This sense of dynamism was explored to great effect in the artist's earliest black-and-white paintings, which laid the foundation for her enduring formal vocabulary. In 2020, after revisiting her earlier works at her retrospective exhibition organized by the National Galleries of Scotland, Riley returned to black-and-white lozenges, adjusting the orientation of each shape to create a new visual sensation.

In 1967, Riley introduced color into her work, expanding the perceptual and optical possibilities of her compositions. Published on the occasion of the 2021 exhibition at David Zwirner, London, this monograph features new scholarship on the artist by art historian Éric de Chassey, who explores how Riley's past, as well as previous artists, has shaped this body of work.

Weight: 854g
Dimension: 248 x 309 x 14 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781644230664