Art, Engagement, Economy

the Working Practice of Caroline Woolard

foreword by Patricia C. Phillips
introduction by Caroline Woolard
text by D. Graham Burnett, Alison Burstein, Stamatina Gregory, Larissa Harris, Leigh Claire La Berge, Stephanie Owens, Cybele Maylone, Steven Matijcio, Sheetal Prajapati, Caitlin Julia Rubin, Mierle Laderman Ukeles, and Caroline Woolard
interviews by Thyrza Nichols Goodeve and Tina Rivers Ryan
illustrations by Caroline Woolard

Pedagogical and participatory art from the coauthor of Making and Being

In Art, Engagement, Economy: the Working Practice of Caroline Woolard, this acclaimed New York–based artist and educator (born 1984) proposes a politics of transparent production in the arts, whereby heated negotiations and mundane budgets are presented alongside documentation of finished gallery installations. Readers follow the behind-the-scenes work that is required to produce interdisciplinary art projects, from a commission at MoMA to a self-organized, international barter network with over 20,000 participants.

With contextual analysis of the political economy of the arts, from the financial crisis of 2008 to the Covid pandemic of 2020, this book suggests that artists can bring studio-based sculptural techniques to an approach to art-making that emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration and dialogue.

Paperback | 568 pages | Onomatopee Projects | 2021