George Bataille

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Encyclopaedia Acephalica: Comprising the Critical Dictionary & Related Texts

George Bataille; Isabelle Waldberg; Acephale (Secret Society)

Synopsis:
"Encyclopædia Acephalica" assembles work and source photographs from "Critical Dictionary," "Documents," and "Da Costa Encyclopédique," written by a group of writers loosely associate with George Bataille, some of whom were members of his Acéphale group, and others who belonged to surrealist groups in Paris and New York. The "Critical Dictionary" first appeared in the magazine edited by Bataille, "Documents," which is included here as the second series of texts. These two sections, along with "Da Costa Encyclopédique," cover essential concepts of Bataille and his associates. The "Documents" group was celebrated for joining together substantial artists, authors, sociologists an ethnologists in a literary and philosophical project. The Acéphale group was more mysterious, even its membership is only vaguely known, and its activities remain secret. The origins of the Da Costa only became known in 1993, and the present volume reveals for the first time its principal compilers: Robert Lebel, Isabelle Waldberg and marcel Duchamp; even so, the identity of the authors of a large part of it remain unknown.

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Other editions: Softcover - 1991, Softcover - 1987, Softcover - 1982, 1977