A Thing Among Things The Art of Jasper Johns

In this reading of Jasper Johns's work, John Yau focuses his attention on how the artist's pioneering paintings relate to life as it is lived - and on what they tell us about what it means to be mortal and alive in time. Along the way, Yau clears a much-needed path through the tangle of narrowly self-reflexive interpretations that have plagued so much critical writing on Johns's work during the past half century - providing a fresh approach and opening our eyes to Johns's accomplishment in revealing ways. This book is written with both precision and passion. It should be read by everyone who cares about modern painting.