Respini Eva Respini, the organizer of Walid Raad, Walid Raad is one of the leading artists of his generation. His is the Barbara Lee Chief Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston. works explore historical, political, economic, and aesthetic Formerly a curator in the Department Walid Raad facts and fi ctions related to the Lebanese wars and to “Arab” of Photography at The Museum of Modern Art, she is the author of several books art. This book surveys almost three decades of Raad's practice published by the Museum, including Robert in a variety of mediums—including photography, video, and Heinecken: Object Matter (2014) and Cindy Sherman (2012). performance—while focusing on his groundbreaking project The Atlas Group (1989–2004) and his ongoing work Scratching Finbarr Barry Flood is William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of the Humanities at the on things I could disavow (2007– ). Essays by Eva Respini Institute of Fine Arts and Department of and Finbarr Barry Flood place Raad’s art in the international Art History, New York University. He is the author of numerous articles and several context of contemporary artmaking, and the book includes books, including Objects of Translation: a special eighteen-page visual contribution by Raad himself. Material Culture and Medieval “Hindu- Muslim” Encounter (2009), awarded It is published to accompany the fi rst comprehensive exhibition the 2011 Ananda K. Coomaraswamy Prize of his work in the United States. of the Association for Asian Studies. 192 pp.; 216 color and black and white images Front cover Appendix XVIII: Plate 101_A History of Indices. 2009. Pigmented inkjet print, 21 ½ × 16 ½ " (54.6 × 41.9 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III Endowment Back cover I might die before I get a rifl e_Device III. 1993 / 2002. Pigmented inkjet print, 63" × 6' 11" (160 × 210.8 cm). Courtesy the artist and Paula Cooper Gallery, Walid New York Raad Published by The Museum of Modern Art 11 West 53 Street New York, New York 10019 www.moma.org Distributed in the United States and Canada by ARTBOOK | D.A.P., New York 155 Sixth Avenue, 2nd fl oor New York, NY 10013 www.artbook.com Distributed outside the United States and Canada by Thames & Hudson ltd 181A High Holborn, London WC1V 7QX www.thamesandhudson.com Printed in Turkey The Museum of Modern Art Walid Raad Eva Respini With a contribution by Walid Raad and an essay by Finbarr Barry Flood Published in conjunction with the exhibition © 2015 The Museum of Modern Art, Front cover: 6 Foreword Walid Raad, at The Museum of Modern Art, New York Appendix XVIII: Plate 101_A History of New York, October 12, 2015–January 31, Indices. 2009. Pigmented inkjet print, 2016, organized by Eva Respini with Katerina Copyright credits for certain illustrations are 21 1/2 × 16 1/2" (54.6 × 41.9 cm). The Museum 7 Acknowledgments Stathopoulou cited on p. 191. All rights reserved of Modern Art, New York. Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III Endowment The exhibition will travel to the Institute Individual works of art appearing in this 9 I Thought I’d Escape My Fate, but Apparently of Contemporary Art/Boston, volume may be protected by copyright in the Back cover: Walid Raad February 24–May 30, 2016, and to United States and may not be reproduced I might die before I get a rifle_Device III. the Museo Jumex, Mexico City, without the permission of the rights holders. 1993 / 2002. Pigmented inkjet print, October 13, 2016–January 14, 2017. In reproducing the images contained in this 63" × 6' 11" (160 × 210.8 cm). Courtesy 28 Slippery Delays and Optical Mysteries: publication, The Museum of Modern Art has the artist and Paula Cooper Gallery, The exhibition is made possible by The Andy obtained the permission of the rights holders New York The Work of Walid Raad Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, whenever possible. Should the Museum have Eva Respini The Jill and Peter Kraus Endowed Fund been unable to locate a rights holder, not- for Contemporary Exhibitions, MoMA’s withstanding good-faith efforts, it requests Wallis Annenberg Fund for Innovation in that any contact information concerning Contemporary Art through the Annenberg such rights holders be forwarded, so that Foundation, and The Contemporary Arts they may be contacted for future editions. Council of The Museum of Modern Art. Library of Congress Control Number: Major support is provided by Oya Eczacıbaşı; 2015942034 A. Huda and Samia Farouki; and by Elham ISBN: 978-0-87070-973-9 49 and Tony Salamé, Aïshti Foundation Beirut. Published by The Museum of Modern Art With generous funding from Basil and 11 West 53 Street The Raghida Rahim, Maya and Ramzy Rasamny, New York, New York 10019 and from Rana Sadik and Samer Younis. www.moma.org Additional support is provided by the Distributed in the United States and Canada Atlas MoMA Annual Exhibition Fund with major by ARTBOOK | D.A.P., New York contributions from an anonymous donor, 155 Sixth Avenue, 2nd floor, New York, NY The Contemporary Arts Council of The 10013 Museum of Modern Art, Glenn and Eva www.artbook.com Dubin, The Donald R. Mullen Family Group Foundation, Inc., The Junior Associates Distributed outside the United States of The Museum of Modern Art, Mimi and Canada by Thames & Hudson ltd and Peter Haas Fund, Franz Wassmer, 181A High Holborn, London WC1V 7QX Gary and Karen Winnick, and from Susan www.thamesandhudson.com and Leonard Feinstein. Printed in Turkey 110 Research and travel support for this exhibition was provided by The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art. Scratching This publication was made possible by the Nancy Lee and Perry Bass Publication Endowment Fund. on Things Produced by the Department of Publications, The Museum of Modern Art, New York Christopher Hudson, Publisher I Could Disavow Chul R. Kim, Associate Publisher David Frankel, Editorial Director Marc Sapir, Production Director Edited by David Frankel Designed by Project Projects Production by Marc Sapir Printed and bound by Ofset Yapimevi, 161 Staging Traces of Histories Not Easily Disavowed Istanbul Finbarr Barry Flood This book is typeset in Fakt and Lyon. The papers are Arctic Volume 150 gsm 175 Key to Plates and Amber Graphic 130 gsm. 177 Selected Bibliography 186 Selected Exhibition History 189 Performance Chronology 191 Lenders to the Exhibition 192 Trustees of The Museum of Modern Art Foreword Acknowledgments In an age of increasing Western engagement with art from González and former Director Patrick Charpenel of Museo Jumex, A project of this scope would have been impossible without the Comer, Chief Curator, Department of Media and Performance across the globe, it is a pleasure to present the fi rst American for embracing this project. This tour is only possible because assistance of many dedicated and talented people, both within Art. In the Department of Photography I appreciate the assis- museum survey of one of contemporary art’s most critical the lenders (p. 191) have been willing to part with important and outside The Museum of Modern Art. My heartfelt appreciation tance of Marion Tandé, Department Manager, and Megan fi gures, Walid Raad. Several years ago I had the opportunity works for over a year, and we owe them an enormous debt. goes to Glenn D. Lowry, Director, a champion of the show since Feingold, Department Coordinator, and the contributions of of traveling with Raad in the United Arab Emirates, where I extend my profound gratitude to Eva Respini for organizing its inception and a critical sounding board when I needed it. At the curatorial interns Chelsea June Airey and Gökcan Demirkazik. we encountered an advertisement for a commercial bank stat- this important exhibition. Before assuming the role of Barbara ICA/Boston, I am deeply grateful to Jill Medvedow, Ellen Matilda Erik Patton, Associate Director of Exhibition Planning ing “Pre-write history.” This slogan precipitated a lengthy Lee Chief Curator at the ICA/Boston, Eva served as a curator Poss Director, who warmly welcomed me and this project to Boston. and Administration, and Rachel Kim, Assistant Coordinator, conversation about what history means in a region with various in MoMA’s Department of Photography, organizing exhibitions I am honored by the generous support provided for the Exhibition Planning and Administration, provided counsel on and oft en confl icting accounts of past, present, and future. such as the Museum’s major retrospective of Cindy Sherman exhibition by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts; the organizing of the show. Susan Palamara, Registrar, and No one has thought more about this problem than Raad; the and its long-overdue survey of the work of Robert Heinecken. The Jill and Peter Kraus Endowed Fund for Contemporary Victoria Manning, Assistant Registrar, skillfully handled the construction of history—how it is made, received, visualized, I also wish to thank Finbarr Barry Flood, William R. Kenan Exhibitions; MoMA’s Wallis Annenberg Fund for Innovation transport and registration. Lee Ann Daff ner, Andrew W. Mellon and understood—is a central theme for him. A Lebanese Jr. Professor of the Humanities, Institute of Fine Arts and in Contemporary Art through the Annenberg Foundation; The Foundation Conservator of Photographs, provided deft stew- national who fl ed his war-torn country in 1983, Raad emerged Department of Art History, New York University, for his illumi- Contemporary Arts Council of The Museum of Modern Art; ardship of the exhibition’s objects. Mack Cole-Edelsack, Exhibition in the 1990s with work that asked urgent questions about the nating contribution to this book. Oya Eczacıbaşı; A. Huda and Samia Farouki; Elham and Tony Designer, and Matthew Cox, Assistant Production Manager, power of images and information within the context of the Finally I salute Walid Raad for his extreme generosity Salamé, Aïshti Foundation Beirut; Basil and Raghida Rahim; conceived an elegant exhibition design.