Picture in Question

Mark Tansey and the Ends of Representation

Taylor Mark C.

A rich exploration of the possibilities of representation after Modernism, Mark Taylor's new study charts the logic and continuity of Mark Tansey's painting by considering the philosophical ideas behind Tansey's art. Taylor examines how Tansey uses structuralist and poststructuralist thought as well as catastrophe, chaos, and complexity theory to create paintings that please the eye while provoking the mind. Taylor's clear accounts of thinkers ranging from Plato, Kant, and Hegel to Merleau-Ponty, Derrida, and de Man will be an invaluable contribution to students and teachers of art.

Contents:

Preface
1. Picturing Painting
2. Re-presenting Representation
3. Sutures of Structures
4. Painting Under Erasure
5. Figuring Complexity
6. Transitions
References for Paintings
Index

About the Author

Mark C. Taylor is the Chair of the Department of Religion at Columbia University. Taylor's books address topics ranging from philosophy, religion, literature, art and architecture to education, media, science, technology and economics. He has won American Academy of Religion Awards for Excellence for his books "Nots" (1994), "Altarity" (1998), and "After God" (2007). Taylor was founding editor of the influential "Religion and Postmodernism" series. His most recent book is "Crisis on Campus" (Knopf, 2010).

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