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Air Guitar: Essays on Art & Democracy Paperback – August 2, 1997
by
Dave Hickey
(Contributor)
|
Dave Hickey
(Contributor)
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The 23 essays (or "love songs") that make up the now classic volume Air Guitar trawl a "vast, invisible underground empire" of pleasure, through record stores, honky-tonks, art galleries, jazz clubs, cocktail lounges, surf shops and hot-rod stores, as restlessly on the move as the America they depict. Air Guitar pioneered a kind of plain-talking in cultural criticism, willingly subjective and always candid and direct. A valuable reading tool for art lovers, neophytes, students and teachers alike, Hickey's book--now in its eighth printing--has galvanized a generation of art lovers, with new takes on Norman Rockwell, Robert Mapplethorpe, Stan Brakhage, Andy Warhol and Perry Mason. In June 2009, Newsweek voted Air Guitar one of the top 50 books that "open a window on the times we live in, whether they deal directly with the issues of today or simply help us see ourselves in new and surprising ways," and described the book as "a seamless blend of criticism, personal history, and a deep appreciation for the sheer nuttiness of American life."
Dave Hickey (born 1939) is one of today's most revered and widely read art writers. He has written for Rolling Stone, Art News, Art in America, Artforum and Vanity Fair among many others.
Dave Hickey (born 1939) is one of today's most revered and widely read art writers. He has written for Rolling Stone, Art News, Art in America, Artforum and Vanity Fair among many others.
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Print length208 pages
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LanguageEnglish
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PublisherArt Issues Press
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Publication dateAugust 2, 1997
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Dimensions6.01 x 0.68 x 9 inches
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ISBN-100963726455
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ISBN-13978-0963726452
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Editorial Reviews
Review
Dave Hickey's twenty-three "love songs," which make up Air Guitar, fly off the page to offer the reader a vista beyond the wasteland. In Hickey's "vast, invisible underground empire" of pleasure--record stores, honky-tonks, hot-rod shops, art galleries, jazz clubs, cocktail lounges, surf shops and the like--joy abounds and truth speaks. -- The Nation, Margaret Juhae Lee
Finally obliged to theorize his impolite tastes, judgments and ideas, Hickey lays his prejudices a little barer than altogether becomes them. Even caught in that old trap, however, he's as good as it gets, starting with his prose. Although his diction is often highfalutin (he was doing a doctoral thesis about Foucault and Derrida way back in 1967), his rhythms aren't, and he's more than fluent in colloquial English--I mean, the guy can flat-out write. -- Los Angeles Times Sunday Book Review, Robert Christgau
Finally obliged to theorize his impolite tastes, judgments and ideas, Hickey lays his prejudices a little barer than altogether becomes them. Even caught in that old trap, however, he's as good as it gets, starting with his prose. Although his diction is often highfalutin (he was doing a doctoral thesis about Foucault and Derrida way back in 1967), his rhythms aren't, and he's more than fluent in colloquial English--I mean, the guy can flat-out write. -- Los Angeles Times Sunday Book Review, Robert Christgau
Product details
- Publisher : Art Issues Press; 1st edition (August 2, 1997)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 208 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0963726455
- ISBN-13 : 978-0963726452
- Item Weight : 14.9 ounces
- Dimensions : 6.01 x 0.68 x 9 inches
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Best Sellers Rank:
#214,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #345 in Democracy (Books)
- #709 in Arts & Photography Criticism
- #1,099 in Popular Culture in Social Sciences
- Customer Reviews:
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Customer reviews
4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
106 global ratings
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2020
Verified Purchase
Dave Hickey writes with a cool ease of well, a guy playing air guitar, though the clever title is revealed in the read related to his thoughts on what criticism truly is. On this journey with him, you'll learn about interesting characters from a roadside America and beyond, not unlike a modern day "On The Road". A strong recommend for critical thinking man or woman who like the challenge of redefinitions and new concepts on age old creative and psychological forms. Buy this book and thank me later.
2 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2013
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If you are even the least bit interested in criticism that takes as its subject the pop culture of America—especially music and art, but also such things as television, basketball, and Las Vegas—you owe it to yourself to read this book. Dave Hickey is our Roland Barthes: he's not like a Left Bank philosopher, but rather he's a steely-eyed fearless observer and analyst who agrees with Oscar Wilde's famous statement that art is useless. And long live our various forms of popular art, in their utter uselessness! =grin=
Hickey is also a great deal of fun to read. I consumed these essays like a box of chocolates.
Hickey is also a great deal of fun to read. I consumed these essays like a box of chocolates.
5 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on July 4, 2017
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A book I've given to many people over the years. The writing, the insights, the humor are incomparable. Dave Hickey is a bit of a curmudgeon, but being as intelligent and cultured as he is, how could he not be.
5.0 out of 5 stars
as well as a laugh-out-loud read - especially the essay on Liberace - I highly recommend this book
Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2017Verified Purchase
Lots of insight on art and life, as well as a laugh-out-loud read - especially the essay on Liberace - I highly recommend this book.
Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2019
Verified Purchase
A classic. Hickey’s analyses on the art world and art criticism still holds true in 2019. He has a very egalitarian approach to the arts and employs a sense of humor in his writing that is disarming.
Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2007
Verified Purchase
For the most part, art critism is pretty dry, boring stuff. In Hickey's hands, it's much more lively. The writing is pretty crisp and engaging. Hickey uses all sorts of literary devices to get his points across- some with more success than others. Overall, it's the kind of book you enjoy to read. Rare in this genre.
The basic "marketplace" angle he takes on the quality of art is pretty edgey. The art world is pretty dominated by those with intense socialist leanings, so his point of view is a nice contrast. He manages to inform us without being too snotty about it.
The basic "marketplace" angle he takes on the quality of art is pretty edgey. The art world is pretty dominated by those with intense socialist leanings, so his point of view is a nice contrast. He manages to inform us without being too snotty about it.
3 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2014
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I thoroughly enjoy this collection of essays on art. It matches intellectualism with curiosity and everyday wonder. Hickey looks at the common visual world with an understanding of fine art and connects the two nicely. His analogies will always remain with me.
Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2016
Verified Purchase
This is a collection of critical essays on various American popular media from the back half of the 20th century. For those who came up anytime between the 60's and the late 80's, the topics will likely resonate, and the eulogies for celebrity figures will inspire fond nostalgia. Hickey has a clever insight for every topic under the sun, no matter how mundane it may seem; he exposes the subtle ideologies that we take for granted in familiar stories and songs.
I am a little bit skeptical of the theme; "Art and Democracy" is far too broad a topic, and the seemingly random pop culture grab-bag represented here lacks unity. Air Guitar has some fantastic content, but as a collection, it never justifies its own necessity. Still, it has its worth as a course on how to write fluid, optimistic criticism (certainly absent from today's polemical internet media); or, simply, as an expertly-rendered nostalgia trip.
I am a little bit skeptical of the theme; "Art and Democracy" is far too broad a topic, and the seemingly random pop culture grab-bag represented here lacks unity. Air Guitar has some fantastic content, but as a collection, it never justifies its own necessity. Still, it has its worth as a course on how to write fluid, optimistic criticism (certainly absent from today's polemical internet media); or, simply, as an expertly-rendered nostalgia trip.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries
Helen Bown
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good but Not the Book for Me.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 11, 2016Verified Purchase
I started doing the art assignment on YouTube so read this book as part of it.
I don’t think I’m creative enough to appreciate it.
I think maybe I grew up in a slightly different age also in the UK not the US which might be another barrier to me truly enjoying the book.
I like the idea of snapshots throughout his life but I just can’t see the bigger picture. Maybe there is no bigger picture. Perhaps it is just a memoir of different creative outlets.
I did spot one theme that it doesn’t matter what status you have in life we can all enjoy and create art .. maybe we don’t need the labels society gives.
Two moments stand out in the book for me , a musical get together at his father’s friends as a child showing how art can bring people together and I seem to remember somewhere a chapter with the message that sometimes art can say things that words (all be it an art form themselves) simply cannot articulate.
I think for the right reader this would be a great book unfortunately that reader isn’t me.
I don’t think I’m creative enough to appreciate it.
I think maybe I grew up in a slightly different age also in the UK not the US which might be another barrier to me truly enjoying the book.
I like the idea of snapshots throughout his life but I just can’t see the bigger picture. Maybe there is no bigger picture. Perhaps it is just a memoir of different creative outlets.
I did spot one theme that it doesn’t matter what status you have in life we can all enjoy and create art .. maybe we don’t need the labels society gives.
Two moments stand out in the book for me , a musical get together at his father’s friends as a child showing how art can bring people together and I seem to remember somewhere a chapter with the message that sometimes art can say things that words (all be it an art form themselves) simply cannot articulate.
I think for the right reader this would be a great book unfortunately that reader isn’t me.
One person found this helpful
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pa.D
5.0 out of 5 stars
Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 25, 2016Verified Purchase
Excellent!
Jan Hamilton
5.0 out of 5 stars
Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2015Verified Purchase
Excellent, thanks :-)
Roz
5.0 out of 5 stars
Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 17, 2014Verified Purchase
Great!!
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