The museums of contemporary art : notion and development

Where, how, by whom and for what were the first museums of contemporary art created? These are the key questions addressed by J. Pedro Lorente in this new and expanded edition of his groundbreaking 1998 study, ''Cathedrals of Urban Modernity''. In it he explores the concept and history of museums of contemporary art, and the shifting ways in which they have been imagined and presented. Following an introduction that sets out the historiography and considering questions of terminology, the first part of the book then examines the paradigm of the Musee des Artistes Vivants in Paris and its equivalents in the rest of Europe during the nineteenth century. The second part, consisting of entirely new material, takes the story forward from 1930 to the present, presenting New York's Museum of Modern Art as a new universal role model that found emulators or 'contramodels' in the rest of the Western world during the twentieth century. This title includes an epilogue, reviews recent museum developments in the last decades. Through its adoption of a long-term, international perspective, the book not only provides a narrative of the development of museums of contemporary art, but also sets this into its international perspective. By assessing the extent to which the great museum-capitals - Paris, London and New York in particular - created their own models of museum provision, as well as acknowledging the influence of such models elsewhere, the book uncovers fascinating perspectives on the practice of museum provision, and reveals how present cultural planning initiatives have often been shaped by historical uses Where, how, by whom and for what were the first museums of contemporary art created? These are the key questions addressed by J. Pedro Lorente in this new book. In it he explores the concept and history of museums of contemporary art, and the shifting ways in which they have been imagined and presented. Following an introduction that sets out the historiography and considering questions of terminology, the first part of the book then examines the paradigm of the Musée des Artistes Vivants in Paris and its equivalents in the rest of Europe during the nineteenth century. The second part takes the story forward from 1930 to the present, presenting New York's Museum of Modern Art as a new universal role model that found emulators or'contramodels'in the rest of the Western world during the twentieth century. An epilogue, reviews recent museum developments in the last decades. Through its adoption of a long-term, worldwide perspective, the book not only provides a narrative of the development of museums of contemporary art, but also sets this into its international perspective. By assessing the extent to which the great museum-capitals - Paris, London and New York in particular - created their own models of museum provision, as well as acknowledging the influence of such models elsewhere, the book uncovers fascinating perspectives on the practice of museum provision, and reveals how present cultural planning initiatives have often been shaped by historical uses. Impressive in scope, and filled with details on the way the museums were designed and their collections organized and presented, this volume groups the discussion of modern and contemporary art museums in Europe and the U.S. into two parts; those that emulated or otherwise reacted to the model of the 19th-century Musee des artistes vivants (housed in the Luxembourg Palace), and those modeled after or reacting to the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Lorente (art history, U. of Saragossa, Spain) excels at contextualizing museums within the political and cultural movements of their times, describing the people and motives behind their founding, their relationship to the urban area in which they are situated, and the trajectory of their success. The volume includes a number of lengthy short essays on related topics in inset boxes and is beautifully illustrated with b&w drawings of museums by Francisco-Javier Hernandez Caudal. Originally published as Los museos de arte contemporaneo: Nocion y desarrollo historico in 2008 by Editorial Trea of Gijon, the text has been ably translated by Rosa Ania and Noel Murphy. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Content: The Parisian Musée du Luxembourg as a paradigm in the nineteenth century. The origin of the Musée des Artistes Vivants in Paris -- The first emulators and alternatives to Luxembourg -- Unresolved dilemmas in the last third of the nineteenth century -- Utopian ideas and experiments at the turn of the century -- The role of the MoMA of New York as the international model of the twentieth century. Foundations and context of the MoMA's creation -- MoMA's transition to adulthood amidst war and confrontations -- The MoMA as an international role model during the Cold War: triumph and opposition -- The Pompidou Centre: a counter-model which ends up imitating MoMA -- Topographic review of the new museums of contemporary art at the turn of the millennium. Where, how, by whom and for what were the first museums of contemporary art created? These are the key questions addressed by Pedro Lorente in this new and expanded edition of his groundbreaking 1998 study, Cathedrals of Urban Modernity. In it he explores the concept and history of museums of contemporary art, and the shifting ways in which they have been imagined and presented. The first part of the book examines the paradigm of the Musée des Artistes Vivants in Paris and its equivalents in the rest of Europe during the nineteenth century. The second part, consisting of entirely new material