📖 Overview
100 Artists' Manifestos collects key artistic and cultural declarations from the past century, spanning from F.T. Marinetti's Futurist Manifesto of 1909 to the Stuckists' manifestos of 1999.
The book presents manifestos chronologically, with each text accompanied by contextual notes and biographical information about its creators. Editor Alex Danchev curates works from movements including Dada, Surrealism, Constructivism, and Abstract Expressionism.
The collection includes both famous proclamations and lesser-known statements from artists across Europe, the Americas, and Asia. The manifestos range from political calls-to-arms to aesthetic theories and philosophical positions.
These documents trace the evolution of artistic ideology through the 20th century, revealing how creators responded to social upheaval, technological change, and shifting concepts of art itself. The manifestos demonstrate art's role as both a mirror of society and an agent of transformation.
👀 Reviews
Readers value this collection for bringing together hard-to-find manifestos in one accessible volume. The chronological organization helps track how art movements influenced each other over time.
Likes:
- Strong introduction provides context for each manifesto
- Includes both famous and obscure texts
- Helpful notes explain references and terminology
- Shows evolution of manifesto writing styles
Dislikes:
- Some translations feel stiff or academic
- Several key manifestos are missing
- Limited visual content/examples
- Dense academic language in editor's commentary
Ratings:
Goodreads: 4.1/5 (89 ratings)
Amazon: 4.5/5 (12 ratings)
Notable reader comments:
"Perfect reference for art students" - Goodreads review
"Would benefit from more historical context" - Amazon review
"Translation choices sometimes obscure original meaning" - Goodreads review
"Good starting point but not comprehensive" - LibraryThing review
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Art in Theory 1900-2000: An Anthology of Changing Ideas by Charles Harrison, Paul Wood A comprehensive collection of artists' writings, theoretical texts, and critical commentary that traces the evolution of artistic thought through the 20th century.
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Pictures of the Gone World by Lawrence Ferlinghetti This compilation of poetry manifestos and statements from the Beat Generation represents a pivotal moment in American literary rebellion and artistic independence.
Art in Theory 1900-2000: An Anthology of Changing Ideas by Charles Harrison, Paul Wood A comprehensive collection of artists' writings, theoretical texts, and critical commentary that traces the evolution of artistic thought through the 20th century.
The Shock of the New by Robert Hughes The text presents the manifestos and movements of modern art through a historical lens that connects artistic declarations to their social and political contexts.
Women Artists: The Linda Nochlin Reader by Anne Sutherland Harris, Linda Nochlin A collection of essays and manifestos that examine feminist art movements and female artists' declarations of independence throughout art history.
🤔 Interesting facts
🎨 The book includes Vladimir Mayakovsky's 1918 manifesto "A Drop of Tar," which was originally distributed as a leaflet in the streets of Moscow and featured the provocative line "The old art is dead like an old wife."
📚 Author Alex Danchev was a Professor of International Relations who brought a unique political perspective to art history, having written extensively about both war and art, including biographies of artists like Cézanne and Braque.
✍️ The manifestos span nearly 100 years of art history, from F.T. Marinetti's "The Founding and Manifesto of Futurism" (1909) to the Stuckists' "The Remodernist Film Manifesto" (2008).
🖼️ The collection includes several manifestos that were initially censored or suppressed, such as André Breton's Second Surrealist Manifesto, which attacked former members of the movement and caused significant controversy in the Paris art world.
🌟 Many of the manifestos in the book were translated into English for the first time for this collection, making previously inaccessible texts available to English-speaking readers.