Spanning 1989 to 2009, this anthology collects the influential writings of American artist, musician and critic John Miller (born 1954), which have been lauded by Bruce Hainley in
Artforum
as “a pungent intervention into the ideologies of beauty, representation and looking.” Ranging from reviews and cultural essays to theory and artist's statements, Miller's writings distinguish themselves from other styles of art criticism insofar as they relate to his larger artistic concerns with the social context of the art object and its sociopolitical ramifications as a commodity (as the title of this volume implies); they are also deeply informed by Miller's vast knowledge of art history and popular culture. More recently, Miller has entered into close dialogue with Dan Graham, Bob Nickas and Nicolas Guagnini. Many of the essays collected here—such as his contributions to the German magazine
Texte zur Kunst
—appear in English for the first time.