The Contemporary Art Book

At one time dismissed by many as inaccessible, elitist or even facile, contemporary art has since entered the realm of popular culture and is enjoyed by millions of gallery visitors every year. Public interest has grown dramatically since the 1990s, in part due to influential art collectors such as Charles Saatchi, whose promotion of contemporary art brought about the rise of The Young British Artists (or YBAs) to international celebrity status. Over the past decade ambitious redevelopments and new constructions conceived specifically for contemporary art - such as London's Tate Modern, Centre Pompidou in Paris and Museo Guggenheim Bilbao - have attracted record numbers of visitors. This accessible guide pinpoints key artists and events, and so helps demystify a generation of rapid change in the art world. The A-Z listing features 200 of the most widely exhibited and remarkable artists who have made substantial contributions over the past 40 years; with biographies, insights into their key works and cross-references to linked artists, themes and movements.

Charlotte Bonham-Carter is Course Leader of MA Arts and Cultural Enterprise at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts, London. She also works as a researcher and consultant for a number of arts and cultural organizations. From 2011 to 2015, she was Convenor of the MA in Visual Arts Management and Curating at Richmond University. She has held curatorial positions at a number of public arts institutions, including the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Barbican Art Gallery, Institute for Contemporary Arts (ICA) and Art on the Underground. Her research interests include contemporary art and curating, arts funding, arts management and cultural policy. She lectures widely on these topics. She holds an MA in Curating Contemporary Art from the Royal College of Art, London.