Thomas Demand: Processo Grottesco / Yellowcake

This elegant, boxed set introduces two new works by Thomas Demand, both presented during the 2007 Venice Biennale. The first volume presents “Processo Grottesco,” a life-sized paper model of a grotto--complete with stalagmites and stalactites--that was exhibited along with other source materials and Demand’s final photographic images. With a section of its pages cut in two, so that one can flip through old cave postcards on top or details of the finished artwork on the bottom, this volume contains rich, exhaustive documentation of the project, including historical documents, working drawings, models in progress, close-up details and final artworks, as well as an essay by Germano Celant. The second, slimmer, silver-edged volume presents the Yellowcake photographs, which portray the Nigerian Embassy in Rome--famous for “sparking” the United States’ 2003 invasion of Iraq. It includes essays by Robert Storr and Alex Farquharson, as well as a summary of “Nigergate” by investigative journalist Carlo Bonini.