“A photograph and a painting are essentially the same thing. One is just a series of pigments in emulsifier put down on canvas, while the other is silver nitrate deposits put down on paper. There is very little difference between the two.” John Baldessari on painting versus photography in the A/W03 issue of AnOther.
The hugely influential and pioneering conceptual artist John Baldessari is world renowned for his text and image paintings as well as his photographic works that often focus on the power of language. Starting off as a painter in Los Angeles he went on to combine photographic images with text – appropriating found imagery, advertisements and movie stills with narrative. Featured in over 200 exhibitions in the U.S and Europe, his work is full of satire, wit and humour, and riddled with a variety of meanings. Inspiring the works of many prominent artists – Barbara Kruger, Cindy Sherman and David Salle to name a few – the much celebrated artist continues to create innovate, iconic and thought provoking pieces today. Most recently Baldessari has created The Giacometti Variations – an exhibition of 15-foot clothed Giacometti sculptures currently taking place at Fondazione Prada, while in Pure Beauty a full range of his work is exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Text by Lucia Davies
