Having Been Said: Writings & Interviews Of Lawrence Weiner 1968-2003

Lawrence Weiner’s art uses language in reference to materials. Language itself is a material and at the same time a means of presentation of his work. Weiner evolved this approach in the context of the Conceptual art of the late 60s, yet he does not see his own work as “conceptual.” The “space” he works within is the entire cultural context, and his works are associated with various different media and forms of presentation: books, posters, videos, films, records, drawings, multiples, installations indoors and outdoors, and more. Since his earliest days as a professional artist, Weiner has given written and verbal expression to questions concerning his work and its context. These utterances — statements, interviews, lectures and conference contributions — have been collected together in this publication for the first time, and ordered chronologically. Taken as a whole they afford an insight both into a complex individual biography and into the wider development of art and culture and the challenge that this entails.