How do artists work today? What kinds of roles do they occupy, have these roles changed over the years, and how does this impact the ecology of art? Has the pluralism of art given way to a pluralism of roles that artists may occupy? What are the contemporary conditions of labour producing this new state of affairs, and what reskilling does it ask of artists? Or, by contrast, what does it mean to sustain a lifelong commitment to another kind of practice, another kind of conversation? How does familiarity with another discipline—whether that of the autodidact or the professionally trained—influence an artist’s practice, and shift how their work is conceptualised, made, and received? These are some of the questions that led to The Artist As, a book that seeks to understand how artists move through the world, and how that movement might necessitate other roles to pursue a project, a position, a politics, or a practice.

The IMA is proud to launch The Artist As, edited by Aileen Burns, Johan Lundh, and Tara McDowell, with contributions by Brook Andrew, Walter Benjamin, Heman Chong, Ekaterina Degot, Hal Foster, Helen Hughes, Helen Johnson, Isabel Lewis, Adam Linder, Suhail Malik, Tara McDowell, Emily Pethick, Terry Smith, Cecilia Vicuña, and Tirdad Zolghadr. Published by Sternberg Press, Curatorial Practice at MADA, and the IMA, The Artist As will be launched at Artspace, Sydney, in conjunction with the 2018 Sydney Biennale. The launch will feature live readings and discussion by Brook Andrew, Andrew Brooks, Aileen Burns, Johan Lundh, and Tara McDowell. This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body.