Artist Thomas Lawson and writer Susan Morgan co-founded REALLIFE Magazine in 1979 as a publication “by and about artists.”
Contents
Magazine
The magazine’s first issue was made possible by a National Endowment for the Arts grant in art criticism, awarded to Lawson through Artists Space (New York). REALLIFE Magazine was based in New York and attentively addressed current art and its influences while continuously speculating about culture and questioning politics. Starting with a focus on the ‘Pictures’ artists - and an affinity with the world of TV, film, and popular culture - the magazine charted the rise of the postmodernism and post feminist debates before moving into more political issues, from institutional critique and hypertext to AIDS and the civil war in El Salvador. As the ‘80s unraveled, and priorities and interests shifted in the art world, the magazine remained a forum for artists’ opinions, providing exposure for those overlooked by the mainstream, and introducing the work of a new generation of practitioners. The wide range of featured artists included Sherrie Levine, Félix González-Torres, Mike Kelley, Dan Graham, Louise Lawler, Joseph Nechvatal, Matt Mullican, Jeff Wall, David Hammons and Critical Art Ensemble, among others.
Exhibition
In March, 2007, Artists Space hosted the exhibition. Curated by Kate Fowle, the show looked at the 80s decade through the lens of this publication and its extraordinary roster of contributors, including Richard Baim, Eric Bogosian, Glenn Branca, Critical Art Ensemble, Jamie Davidovich, Jessica Diamond, Mark Dion + Jason Simon, Jack Goldstein, Kim Gordon, Group Material, David Hammons, Michael Hurson, Ray Johnson, Mike Kelley, Barbara Kruger, Louise Lawler, Sherrie Levine, Sol LeWitt, Robert Longo, Ken Lum, Allan McCollum, Paul McMahon, Matt Mullican, Adrian Piper, Richard Prince, David Robbins, Cindy Sherman, Michael Smith and James Welling.
Book
The exhibition coincided with the publication REALLIFE Magazine: Selected Writings and Projects 1979-1994, edited by Miriam Katzeff and published by Primary Information (NY, 2007). With an introduction by Matthew Higgs, the anthology features writings and projects by Doug Ashford, Jo Baer and Bruce Robbins, Judith Barry, Dara Birnbaum, Joseph Bishop, Eric Bogosian, Jennifer Bolande, Derek Boshier, Jim Bradley, Elsa Bulgari, Rhys Chatham, Mark Dion, Spencer Finch, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Kim Gordon, Dan Graham, Group Material, B.P. Gutfreund, The Holy Ghost Writers, Kellie Jones, Judith Kirshner, Barbara Kruger, Louise Lawler, Thomas Lawson, Christine N. Lea, Sherrie Levine, Allan McCollum, Paul McMahon, John Miller, Robert C. Morgan, Susan Morgan, David A. Muller, Matt Mullican, Kathi Norklun, Adrian Piper, Richard Prince, Rex Reason, David Robbins, Walter Robinson, John Robert, Tim Rollins and K.O.S., Ed Ruscha, Fulton Ryder, Grahame Shane, Cindy Sherman, Laurie Simmons, Howard Singerman, Michael Smith and R. Sikoryak, Jana Sterbak, Josef Strau and Stephan Dillemuth, John Stezaker, Valentin Tatransky, Bernard Tschumi, John A. Walker, Jeff Wall, Joan Wallace and Geralyn Donohue, James Welling, and Robin Winters.