"Ed Ruscha's diverse and highly influential work of the past four decades resists easy categorization. His straightforward depiction of prosaic subjects taken from American popular culture has earned him a reputation as a Pop artist, while his interest in language and typography has aligned him with certain trends in Conceptual art. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1937 and raised in Oklahoma, Ruscha moved in 1956 to Los Angeles, where he studied fine and graphic arts at Chouinard (now CalArts). This book, published to accompany the first museum retrpprestive of Ruscha's original works on paper, highlights over two hundred drawings whose subjects range from the depiction of vernacular objects, trademarks, gas stations, and apartment buildings to renderings of words and phrases in countless stylistic variations. His unusual media, including fruit and vegetable juices, gunpowder, blood, and tobacco juice, further attest to the invention and ingenuity of this major American artist." - inside back cover.

An immense contribution to scholarship on Ed Ruscha and his pioneering artistic practice, offering thorough documentation of his works on paper This highly anticipated book—the first in a series of three—comprehensively chronicles the first two decades of Ed Ruscha’s (b. 1937) work on paper, which comprises the largest component of his production of original works. Over 1,000 works on paper are documented, all created between 1956 and 1976, and they encompass a wide range of formats, materials, themes, and styles. Included are collages, ephemeral sketches, preparatory studies for paintings, oil on paper works, and drawings executed in a variety of inventive materials, including gunpowder and organic substances. Ruscha came to prominence in the early 1960s as part of the Pop art movement, although his work equally engages the legacies of Dada, Surrealism, and Abstract Expressionism as well as the Conceptual art that emerged later in the decade. He has long enjoyed international standing and admiration, and his work is widely known. Despite this recognition, this volume contains hundreds of works that have infrequently, or never, been exhibited or published. Each work is catalogued with a color reproduction, collection details, full chronological provenance, exhibition history, and bibliographic references. Essays by Lisa Turvey and Harry Cooper complete this extraordinary survey, which expands and enriches our understanding of Ruscha’s pioneering exploration of the written word as a subject for visual art and his witty assessment of the iconography of Los Angeles, both real and imagined.

There was a time, as recently as the 1980s, when storefronts, murals, banners, barn signs, billboards, and even street signs were all hand-lettered with brush and paint. But, like many skilled trades, the sign industry has been overrun by the techno-fueled promise of quicker and cheaper. The resulting proliferation of computer-designed, die-cut vinyl lettering and inkjet printers has ushered a creeping sameness into our visual landscape. Fortunately, there is a growing trend to seek out traditional sign painters and a renaissance in the trade. In 2010 filmmakers Faythe Levine, coauthor of Handmade Nation, and Sam Macon began documenting these dedicated practitioners, their time-honored methods, and their appreciation for quality and craftsmanship. Sign Painters, the first anecdotal history of the craft, features stories and photographs of more than two dozen sign painters working in cities throughout the United States. With a foreword by legendary artist (and former sign painter) Ed Ruscha, this vibrant book profiles sign painters young and old, from the new vanguard working solo to collaborative shops such as San Francisco s New Bohemia Signs and New York s Colossal Media s Sky High Murals.

Seventy-nine Short Essays on Design brings together the best of designer Michael Bierut's critical writing—serious or humorous, flattering or biting, but always on the mark. Bierut is widely considered the finest observer on design writing today. Covering topics as diverse as Twyla Tharp and ITC Garamond, Bierut's intelligent and accessible texts pull design culture into crisp focus. He touches on classics, like Massimo Vignelli and the cover of The Catcher in the Rye, as well as newcomers, like McSweeney's Quarterly Concern and color-coded terrorism alert levels. Along the way Nabakov's Pale Fire; Eero Saarinen; the paper clip; Celebration, Florida; the planet Saturn; the ClearRx pill bottle; and paper architecture all fall under his pen. His experience as a design practitioner informs his writing and gives it truth. In Seventy-nine Short Essays on Design, designers and nondesigners alike can share and revel in his insights.

Edited and with an Essay by Sylvia Wolf.

The renowned artist Ed Ruscha was born in Nebraska, grew up in Oklahoma, and has lived and worked in Southern California since the late 1950s. Beginning in 1956, road trips across the American Southwest furnished a conceptual trove of themes and motifs that he mined throughout his career. The everyday landscapes of the West, especially as experienced from the automobileÑgas stations, billboards, building facades, parking lots, and long stretches of roadwayÑare the primary motifs of his often deadpan and instantly recognizable paintings and works on paper, as well as his influential artist books such as Twentysix Gasoline Stations and All the Buildings on the Sunset Strip. His iconic word imagesÑdeclaring Adios, Rodeo, Wheels over Indian Trails, and Honey . . . I Twisted through More Damn Traffic to Get HereÑfurther underscore a contemporary Western sensibility. RuschaÕs interest in what the real West has becomeÑand HollywoodÕs version of itÑplays out across his oeuvre. The cinematic sources of his subject matter can be seen in his silhouette pictures, which often appear to be grainy stills from old Hollywood movies. They feature images of the contemporary West, such as parking lots and swimming pools, but also of its historical past: covered wagons, buffalo, teepees, and howling coyotes. Featuring essays by Karin Breuer and D.J. Waldie, plus a fascinating interview with the artist conducted by Kerry Brougher, this stunning catalogue, produced in close collaboration with the Ruscha studio, offers the first full exploration of the painterÕs lifelong fascination with the romantic concept and modern reality of the evolving American West. Published in association with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco Exhibition dates: de Young, San Francisco: July 16ÐOctober 9, 2016

The first university-level textbook on the power, condition, and expanse of contemporary fine art drawing A Companion to Contemporary Drawing explores how 20th and 21st century artists have used drawing to understand and comment on the world. Presenting contributions by both theorists and practitioners, this unique textbook considers the place, space, and history of drawing and explores shifts in attitudes towards its practice over the years. Twenty-seven essays discuss how drawing emerges from the mind of the artist to question and reflect upon what they see, feel, and experience. This book discusses key themes in contemporary drawing practice, addresses the working conditions and context of artists, and considers a wide range of personal, social, and political considerations that influence artistic choices. Topics include the politics of eroticism in South American drawing, anti-capitalist drawing from Eastern Europe, drawing and conceptual art, feminist drawing, and exhibitions that have put drawing practices at the centre of contemporary art. This textbook: Demonstrates ways contemporary issues and concerns are addressed through drawing Reveals how drawing is used to make powerful social and political statements Situates works by contemporary practitioners within the context of their historical moment Explores how contemporary art practices utilize drawing as both process and finished artifact Shows how concepts of observation, representation, and audience have changed dramatically in the digital era Establishes drawing as a mode of thought Part of the acclaimed Wiley Blackwell Companions to Art History series, A Companion to Contemporary Drawing is a valuable text for students of fine art, art history, and curating, and for practitioners working within contemporary fine art practice.

The first book to consider the importance of commercial art and design for Ed Ruscha's work Ed Ruscha (b. 1937) emerged onto the Los Angeles art scene with paintings that incorporated consumer products, such as Spam and SunMaid raisins. In this revelatory book, Jennifer Quick looks at Ruscha's work through the tools, techniques, and habits of mind of commercial art and design, showing how his training and early work as a commercial artist helped him become an incisive commentator on the presence and role of design in the modern world. The book explores how Ruscha mobilized commercial design techniques of scale, paste-up layout, and perspective as he developed his singular artistic style. Beginning with his formative design education and focusing on the first decade of his career, Quick analyzes previously unseen works from the Ruscha archives alongside his celebrated paintings, prints, and books, demonstrating how Ruscha's engagement with commercial art has been foundational to his practice. Through this insightful lens, Quick affirms Ruscha as a powerful and witty observer of the vast network of imagery that permeates visual culture and offers new perspectives on Pop and conceptual art.

A collection of photographic prints documenting Hollywood Boulevard first in July 1973 and later in June 2004. Same type of camera equipment were used to re-photograph the street. The panoramic images in black and white from 1973 run parallel to 2004 colored version - contrasting the changes over three decades.