Eccentric: Aesthetics of Freedom

Dare to be eccentric! Courageous, free, humorous, touching, and disturbing: these works by fifty international artists show how eccentric means more than neurotic or decadent.

Eccentricity resists all kinds of ideology, and indeed it can be an engine of social freedom and tolerance. Through approximately one hundred pieces--including painting, sculpture, installation art, video, and design--diversity is celebrated in ways that defy rigid norms and clichés. This is a dazzling publication that meets its eccentric topic in its extravagant design.

Inspiring, thoughtful, and quick-witted, the short texts in this book introduce us to some of the most brilliant eccentrics of the art world. The overall impression is just as dazzling as it is multifaceted and shows the full scope of work that is ＂eccentric＂ (from ex centro, outside the middle) through experiments with materials or free-spirited approaches to themes such as identity, body, environment, and humanity. Richly illustrated and beautifully designed, this magazine-like catalog is a feast for the eyes and will awaken curiosity about the eccentric in all of us.

Featured artists include Jean-Marie Appriou, Yael Bartana, Maurizio Cattelan, Julian Charrière, Barbara Chase-Riboud, Salvador Dalí, Max Ernst, Simon Fujiwara, Isa Genzken, Gilbert & George, Mike Kelley, Martin Kippenberger, Jeff Koons, Paul McCarthy, Jonathan Meese, Paola Pivi, Christina Quarles, Pipilotti Rist, Bunny Rogers, Raqib Shaw, Cindy Sherman, Sophia Sü milch, Anna Uddenberg, Andy Warhol, Zadie Xa, and Lu Yang et al.

Eva Karcher is an independent curator, cultural journalist, and expert in the field of contemporary art, and the intersection of art, fashion, design, and philosophy. Bernhart Schwenk is an art historian and has been head of the contemporary art collection at the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich since 2002.