Devil's Playground (Hardcover)

by Nick Cave (Author), Nan Goldin (Author), Enrique Juncosa (Author), Catherine Lampert (Author), Guido Costa (Author), Richard Price (Author), Sharon Olds (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Dating mostly from 2000 to 2002, this latest collection of photos from '80s star Goldin broadens her exploration of intimacy to take in first loves and births, along with the usual chronicling of accidents and illnesses, drug addiction and recovery, age and loss among friends and family. Throughout this nearly 12"×9" collection, the body is always primary, and often unabashedly fleshy. The ease with which Goldin captures her friends and relatives showering, relaxing on a bed, or in the midst of lovemaking is impressive, establishing both the reality of the moment while simultaneously bathing her subjects in her loving, third-party glow. Texts include pieces by Leonard Cohen and Nick Cave, along with New York downtowners John Giorno and the late Cookie Mueller. While Goldin's work is often compared to Diane Arbus's, in that both photographed the so-called "marginal" members of society, rather than using the lens as a distancing, voyeuristic tool, Goldin equalizes viewer and viewed. Through the lens of familiarity, the photo becomes less an exploitation than a connection. Homosexual, transvestite, straight, scarred, tattooed or simply uniquely shaped, everyone has relations-and Goldin does not exempt herself, as two sections in the book follow her struggle against heroin addition. While the 460 shots here are printed in gorgeous color, many of the photos are unfortunately situated across a two-page spread, with the central human figure often disappearing or elided into the gutter, at odds with the overall intention of the collection.
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Review
'You'll be drawn in, turned on, disgusted, or in love with this absorbing book, which has a strange beauty of it own.' (Digital Photographer) 'Her work is defiantly stripped bare - in The Devil's Playground, reality bites.' (Elle) 'This intense, roller-coaster ride through pain and pleasure is made bearable by the extraordinary beauty of the photographs.' (Time Out) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 504 pages
• Publisher: Phaidon Press Inc. (November 18, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0714842230
• ISBN-13: 978-0714842233
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 9.1 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #708,985 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nan Goldin's Magnum Opus, October 25, 2004

By	Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

DEVIL'S PLAYGROUND is a lap-heavy, huge tome of the creative photographs of Nan Goldin, many of which have never before been published. Goldin is know throughout the museums of the world as a photographer who knows no barriers for her subject matter: AIDS victims, mental patients, transvestites, poor families, rural landscapes, constructed still lifes - these are but a few of the categories studied and captured by Goldin. For this full color volume Goldin selected the layout and the progression of sections, making the flow of the book even more fascinating; the book is one where she is both artist and curator and the result is a powerhouse of statement.

For devotees of Nan Goldin's work, this book is a must. And for viewers marginally approaching photography as an art form then look no further. A magnum opus of the work of one of America's more significant contemporary artists.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Purchase , August 10, 2008

By	Estefania Velez "starving artist" (Atlanta, GA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Devil's Playground (Paperback)

I am so happy I bought this book, it was worth the time and money. I have it now on my living room coffee table, everyone who looks through it is spellbound. Thanks!

7 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Devil's Playground, December 6, 2003

By	"augustclay" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

No other word for it except MAGNIFICENT!!!