Anton Vidokle

11/03/11

‘The obituary is historically one of the most under-appreciated forms of writing. More commonly found in daily press than art journals, before the 1960s it aimed to present a wholly positive account of an individual’s life. Sometime in the mid-‘60s, this changed significantly, becoming a way to look more objectively at re-positioning the lifetime achievements of a person within the histories of art, politics and philosophy. It is now much more than just the factual mapping of a life, and instead a commentary on the significance of an influential figure within the fragmented art world, which creates a feeling of a shared artistic communality. Here are ten obituaries from frieze that I have appreciated in recent years.’

About the contributor Anton Vidokle

Anton Vidokle is an artist, born in Moscow and living in New York and Berlin. His work has been exhibited internationally at Venice Biennale, Liverpool Biennial, Lyon Biennial, Dakar Biennale and at Tate Modern among others. As a founder of e-flux he has produced Do it, Utopia Station poster project, and organized 'An Image Bank for Everyday Revolutionary Life', and 'Martha Rosler Library'. Other works include e-flux video rental, co-organized with Julieta Aranda; research into education as a site for artistic practice as co-curator for the cancelled Manifesta 6, European Biennial for Contemporary Art; and Unitednationsplaza – a 12-month experimental school in Berlin initiated in response to the unrealized Manifesta 6. He is co-editor of e-flux journal along with Aranda and Brian Kuan Wood. Vidokle's most recent projects are 'Time/Bank' and 'Time/Store', produced in collaboration with Aranda.

Favourite cover

Frieze Issue 109 cover

Issue 109, September 2007 – by Bruce Nauman