Paper wrappers
1992 · Santa Monica
by Corboz, Andre
Santa Monica: Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities, 1992. First edition. Paper wrappers. A fine copy. As new.. 96 pp. Illus. with b/w photos. 8vo. A series of the Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities. Photographs by Dennis Keeley; preface by Kurt W. Forster. Translation of: "Non-city" revisited. "From Alex de Tocqueville to Jean Baudrillard—Europeans have been fascinated with the idea and the reality of the United States. They have seen in America a difference that, whether provoking or complimentary, has furthered American self-understanding. Looking for a City in America is another chapter in this tradition. The eminent European historian Andre Corboz takes to task previous European analyses of the American city, suggesting they are often little more than reflections of an Old World bad faith. Centering his critical eye on the terrain of postmodern Los Angeles, Corboz makes the case for a new city, one without a center but united by what he sees as a typically American gregarious individualism. Corboz's essay is accompanied by eighty-three photographs of Los Angeles by photographer Dennis Keeley, whose arresting work discovers "moments that would otherwise go unnoticed." The city Keeley presents comprises a visually impressive Los Angeles—the L.A. of contemporary cultural theorists Fredric Jameson and Mike Davis—whose absent center validates its postmodern vision." (Inventory #: 27722)