Jim Lambie

The first major monograph on Turner Prize–nominated Glasgow artist Jim Lambie.
 
This long-awaited volume surveys the career of Glasgow-based contemporary sculptor Jim Lambie. From his distinctive floor works, striped from wall to wall with vibrant electrical tape, to his paint-soaked mattresses, Lambie adroitly sculpts humor and pathos from the clutter of modern life. Working with items immediately at hand, as well as those sourced in secondhand and hardware stores, he resurrects record decks, speakers, clothing, accessories, doors, and mirrors to form sculptural elements in larger compositions.
 
Lambie prioritizes sensory pleasure over intellectual response. He selects materials that are familiar and have a strong personal resonance, so that they offer a way into the work as well as a springboard to a psychological space beyond. This volume not only serves as a definitive mid-career survey but also as a major reframing of the artist’s work. Lambie’s practice has long been understood through the lens of punk and rock music, a frequent theme of his works’ titles. Here the artist and new essays instead trace his approach to the rich material histories he mines and the scrappy, resourceful spirit of his hometown, Glasgow.

Daniel Baumann is the director of Kunsthalle Zürich. He previously served as curator of the Adolf Wölfli Foundation, located at the Museum of Fine Arts in Bern, Switzerland.