The Mechanical Hand

The title of this book gives most of its context away. The Mechanical Hand is a survey of artists’ involvement with multiple printed images.

There are some heavyweight contributors from Grayson Perry and Paula Rego to Cornelia Parker and Glenn Brown. Also included are an interview with Catherine Yass and essays by Martin Herbert (associate editor of Art Review) on Jake and Dinos Chapman and Stephen Chambers.

Inside there are over 25 artists’ works discussed, and in this sense the book provides a platform for looking at prints in the context of contemporary art-making. Spacious and informative, the text offers insight into artists’ working practices; excellent for reviewing the great and the good in today’s art world. The interviews and essays provide a compelling backdrop. Starting with a quote from Man Ray followed by Andy Warhol, the book asks questions – “what constitutes an artist’s print as a means of visualising original thought?” Although not a series of new questions, the discourse within the book is engaging and thought-provoking.

Shirley Stevenson