Humor in Global Contemporary Art

Humor in Global Contemporary Art explores the role of culturally specific humor in contemporary art from a global perspective, covering six major continental regions and offering a critical perspective on the postcolonial, globalized art network. It highlights the cultural specificity of each region while providing a culturally sensitive understanding of how humor has become vital to many contemporary artists working in an unprecedentedly interconnected world.

Format: Hardback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 27 June 2024
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Humor in Global Contemporary Art is a groundbreaking edited collection that explores the role of culturally specific humor in contemporary art from a global perspective. Since the 1960s, artists from around the world have increasingly used humor as a tool for observation, critique, transformation, and debate. This book examines how humorous art produced over the past six decades is anchored in local sociopolitical contexts and translated or misconstrued when exhibited abroad, opening new conversations regarding the functioning of humor and the ways in which art travels across the globe. With contributions by an impressive array of internationally based scholars covering six major continental regions, the book is organized into four distinct geographical sections: Africa and the Middle East, Asia and Oceania, South and North America, and Europe. This structure highlights the cultural specificity of each region while the book as a whole offers a critical perspective on the postcolonial, globalized art network. Reflecting on present-day processes of globalization and biennialization, which confront viewers with humorous art from a variety of cultures and countries, this book will provide readers with a culturally sensitive understanding of how humor has become vital to many contemporary artists working in an unprecedentedly interconnected world.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350415829