The Photograph as Contemporary Art

In the 21st century photography has come of age as a contemporary art form

Almost two centuries after photography was first invented, the art world has fully embraced photography as a legitimate medium, equal in status to painting and sculpture. In light of these exciting developments, this book provides an introduction to contemporary art photography, identifying its most important features and themes and celebrating its exciting pluralism through an overview of its most important and innovative practitioners.

The nearly 250 photographers whose work is reproduced in the book range from established artists such as Isa Genzken, Jeff Wall, Sophie Calle, Thomas Demand, Nan Goldin and Sherrie Levine to emerging talents such as Walead Beshty, Jason Evans, Lucas Blalock, Sara VanDerBeek and Viviane Sassen.

This new edition brings the story of contemporary art photography up to date with a revised introduction outlining the evolution of photography from documentary tool to art form, and an updated final chapter focusing on the younger generation of artists who emphasize the technical and material properties of photography, employ it as part of a wider pan-media practice, or respond to evolving new modes of dissemination in the digital age.

Charlotte Cotton is a curator and writer. She has held positions including
Head of the Wallis Annenberg Photography Department at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Head of Programming at the Photographers’ Gallery, London, Creative Director at the National Media Museum, UK and Curator of Photography at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. Cotton has curated a number of exhibitions on contemporary photography and her publications include Imperfect Beauty, Then Things Went Quiet and Guy Bourdin. She is also the founder of wordswithoutpictures.org and EitherAnd.org.