Customer Reviews

Mr. Fluxus: A Collective Portrait of George Maciunas, 1931-1978

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George Maciunas was such an interesting and eccentric guy whose life influenced so much of late 20th century art and thinking, most notably international performance art and film. That he's been off the radar so long seems strange and makes him ripe for discovery for those interested in understanding the foundation of today's 'anything goes' art scene.

Emmett William's Mr Fluxus is a collective portrait of the founder of the Fluxus group. Maciunas was a typographer, visual designer, teacher and organizer. He was a constant source of ideas, and worked tirelessly to produce them. At various times now famous artists such as Beuyes, Ono and Paik joined a loose band of others. They participated in FluxFests, produced FluxGames and objects and sold them in FluxShops. His FluxHouses were among the seeds of today's SOHO. Among the ironies of his life , is that many of his ideas have led to financial success for others, while he lived a spartan life and suffered financial disasters. The book is a collective of anonymous quotes as Fluxus was a collective. The quotes are attributed at the end, but the form si sometimes confusing. Williams and Ay-O have produced a valuable document for scholars and art lovers. They had the advantage of being insiders with access to many who might not choose to cooperate, and to know many others who might be too obscure. They also spoke to artists while they were still alive about Fluxus. Al Hansen, Dick Higgins, Peter Moore and Dieter Roth are no longer available to us. The book presents George Maciunas in all of his complexity. Fluxus has had a role in the genesis of Performance art and Conceptual art. This book will help us remember him in his context.