Art as document: on conceptual art and documentation
ISSN: 0022-0418
Article publication date: 13 August 2018
Issue publication date: 24 August 2018
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to bring the work of Seth Siegelaub (1941–2013) to the attention of document studies. Siegelaub was a pioneer of the conceptual art movement in New York in the 1960s, active as an Art Dealer, Curator and Publisher. He is remembered by art history for his exhibition catalogues, which provided a material base for intangible works of art.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses a comparative approach to examine the documents of conceptual art, especially the exhibition catalogues produced by Siegelaub between 1968 and 1972. Drawing on literature from document theory and art history and criticism, it examines several of Siegelaub’s key exhibition catalogues and books.
Findings
Siegelaub’s theories of information have much in common with the documentalist tradition. Siegelaub’s work is important, not just for its potential to contribute to the literature of document theory. It also provides a point of dialogue between art history and information studies.
Originality/value
To date, the common ground between art and documentation has been explored almost exclusively from the perspective of art history. This paper is among the first to examine conceptual art from the perspective of document theory. It demonstrates potential for cross-disciplinary collaboration.
Keywords
Citation
Berryman, J. (2018), "Art as document: on conceptual art and documentation", Journal of Documentation, Vol. 74 No. 6, pp. 1149-1161. https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-01-2018-0010
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited