Synopsis
These days artists like Damien Hirst and Tracy Emin are big business and major celebrities. But Gregor Muir knew them at the start of their careers - before people even talked about a movement called YBA. His unique memoir is the first history of the birth of the Young British Artists, and a slice of London subculture. Muir - who now runs a major London gallery - describes himself accurately as YBA's "embedded journalist". He was the only writer who happened to be in Shoreditch and Hoxton at the time when the White Cube Gallery was founded, and at that unique moment of recent history when a remarkable array of young artists - Hirst, the Chapman brothers, Sarah Lucas, Rachel Whiteread, Sam Taylor-Wood - all came together to produce a fresh, irreverent, wacky and quickly enormously popular form of art. Often it was notorious - Hirst's shark, Whiteread's House, Lucas's two fried eggs and a kebab - and incredibly newsworthy. Their hedonistic riotous world grew up in a then forgotten, down-at-heel part of East London. Back then Shoreditch was full of squats and grotty pubs, not groovy nightclubs. Muir tells the history of YBA up to the seminal Sensation show at the Royal Academy - a picaresque, hilarious story never before told. An Ian Sinclair for the modern art world, this is a memorable and unique piece of modern history. Gregor Muir now runs a London art gallery.
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About the Author
Gregor Muir now runs the London art gallery Hauser and Wirth.
Review
"* 'An absorbing and intelligent account of the times, this is a must-read for anyone interested in contemporary art or the 1990s Brit Scene' Bookseller"
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Lucky Kunst: The Story of YBA
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Lucky Kunst : The Story of YBA
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Quarto Publishing Group UK, 2009
ISBN 10: 1845133900
ISBN 13: 9781845133900
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Lucky Kunst: The Rise & Fall Of Young British Art
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20.0 x 15.0cms 250pp b/w illusts very good+ paperback with French flaps. Muir knew the Young British Artists before the world knew Damien Hirst the Chapman Brothers Sarah L:ucas Rachel Whitbread Sam Taylor-Wood Tracey Emin etc. Seller Inventory # 20364823
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Lucky Kunst: The Story of YBA
Published by
Quarto Publishing PLC, United Kingdom, 2009
ISBN 10: 1845133900
ISBN 13: 9781845133900
Used
Paperback
Seller: WorldofBooks, Goring-By-Sea, WS, United Kingdom
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Paperback. Condition: Very Good. These days artists like Damien Hirst and Tracy Emin are big business and major celebrities. But Gregor Muir knew them at the start of their careers - before people even talked about a movement called YBA. His unique memoir is the first history of the birth of the Young British Artists, and a slice of London subculture. Muir - who now runs a major London gallery - describes himself accurately as YBA's "embedded journalist". He was the only writer who happened to be in Shoreditch and Hoxton at the time when the White Cube Gallery was founded, and at that unique moment of recent history when a remarkable array of young artists - Hirst, the Chapman brothers, Sarah Lucas, Rachel Whiteread, Sam Taylor-Wood - all came together to produce a fresh, irreverent, wacky and quickly enormously popular form of art. Often it was notorious - Hirst's shark, Whiteread's House, Lucas's two fried eggs and a kebab - and incredibly newsworthy. Their hedonistic riotous world grew up in a then forgotten, down-at-heel part of East London. Back then Shoreditch was full of squats and grotty pubs, not groovy nightclubs. Muir tells the history of YBA up to the seminal Sensation show at the Royal Academy - a picaresque, hilarious story never before told. An Ian Sinclair for the modern art world, this is a memorable and unique piece of modern history. Gregor Muir now runs a London art gallery. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR002021504
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Lucky Kunst: The Story of YBA
Published by
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ISBN 10: 1845133900
ISBN 13: 9781845133900
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