Myways, 2006
Book, 11.3 x 17.8 cm, 157 p, language: English, publisher: Printed Matter, Whitney Museum of American Art, Arsenal Pulp Press, ISBN: 9781551521985.
©image: M HKA
Collection: Collection M HKA, Antwerp (Inv. no. B 2025/227).
Literary synopsis
Myways is the fourth and final book in the Ways series, by visual artist Rita McBride. Myways takes on the genre of self-help in this collection of “columns” by Gina Ashcraft, an art magazine “advice columnist”. It is a funny guide to art and life that pokes fun at our grandest institutions. (Authors of the texts include: Lawrence Bailey, Jay Battle, Mary Caponegro, Erin Cosgrove, Christina Gómez Barrio and Wolfgang Mayer, Matthew Geller, David Gray, Pablo Helguera, Michele Hierholzer, Philippine Hoegen, Diana Kingsley, Matthew Licht, Rita McBride, Willem Ooerbeek, Jackson Perry, R.H. Quaytman, Kimberly Sexton, Gordon Tapper, Erica Van Horn, Marcel Vos.)
Relation of the novel to the artist’s practice
Rita McBride: Double to Watch, Triple to Help was the title of an exhibition by Rita McBride at Alexander and Bonin Gallery, in New York. To coincide with the show, the artist published Myways. With contributions from nearly two dozen artists, writers, and curators, the book, a compilation of advice columns by fictional artist Gina Ashcraft, is linked only tenuously to the works on display at Alexander and Bonin, but possesses all the humor and ambiguity one would have liked to encounter in the gallery.
Authorship: Collective Authorship, Fictional Author.
Creative Strategy: Artworks Cite Novel.
Genre: Self-Help.
Publishing: Art Books Publishing House, Public Institution, Publishing House.
Theme: Art World, Everyday Life.
Media
>Cover 'Myways', 2006
>view of "Rita McBride: Double to Watch, Triple to Help": exhibition by Rita McBride at Alexander and Bonin Gallery, in New York, 2006.
>view of "Rita McBride: Double to Watch, Triple to Help": exhibition by Rita McBride at Alexander and Bonin Gallery, New York, 2006. Novel related: Myways
Artists
> Rita McBride.
> David Gray.
Exhibitions & Ensembles
> Exhibition: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE ARTWORK BECOMES A NOVEL?. M HKA, Antwerp, 07 December 2012 - 21 April 2013.
> Exhibition: Book Lovers 4.0 (Pop-up Bookstore). De Appel Arts Centre, Amsterdam, 28 January 2014 - 02 February 2014.
> Exhibition: THE BOOK LOVERS - A Project about Artist Novels. The Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, New York, 25 January 2013 - 09 March 2013.
> Exhibition: The Preparation of the Novel (Book Lovers 5.0). Fabra i Coats - Centre d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona, Barcelona, 18 July 2014 - 05 September 2014.
> Ensemble: The Artist's Novel.