Robert Irwin ─ All the Rules Will Change

Robert Irwin, one of the most influential
postwar American artists and a pioneering
figure of California Light and Space Art, is
the subject of this book that traces his
development and remarkable accomplishments
in the 1960s. The first publication to focus exclusively on Irwin's extraordinary
trajectory during the 1960s, this book explores how the
artist moved from creating small-scale abstract paintings
to temporary installations that responded to the specific
circumstances of a given site. During this relatively brief interval,
Irwin methodically interrogated the most essential premises of
art and, in the process, ultimately redefined what a work of art
could be, proposing that art not be limited to objects but be
considered a way of seeing. Through its discussion of Irwin's
paintings, sculptures, and his new site-conditioned scrim
installation created in response to the Hirshhorn's distinctive
round architecture, this publication immerses the reader in the
artist's groundbreaking investigations into the nature of color,
light, and perception. The essays offer fresh insights into Irwin's
art while highlighting his pivotal role in the broader aesthetic
developments in the 1960s. The book also includes text by Irwin.