Victor BURGIN British, b. 1941
UK 76, 1976
Set of 11 archival inkjet / pigment prints
100 x 150 cm (each)
Edition 2 of 3
The work was originally exhibited as series of posters pasted onto the wall, (e.g. John Weber Gallery, New York 1977). According to the artist, no sets are remaining in this...
The work was originally exhibited as series of posters pasted onto the wall, (e.g. John Weber Gallery, New York 1977). According to the artist, no sets are remaining in this format.
At the same time, one smaller set was made and sold to the Arts Council Collection. Burgin says that it was made under commercial pressure from his gallery at the time but that he no longer considers it the 'real' work. The whole point of the work, according to Burgin, is that it makes reference to poster dimensions, not fine art prints. He doesn't consider this set as belonging to any edition.
Burgin says, "In the context of 1976 the work set out to combine allusions to: 1) the practices of "street photography" and “social documentary”; 2) the practices of such glossy magazines as Vogue, in “reversing out” a “snappy” and often punning caption over a black & white fashion photograph; 3) the poster (in 1976 one rarely encountered photographs in art galleries, and those one saw were invariably printed small, in the tradition of the “fine print”)".
The first reprinting of UK '76 took place on the occasion of Burgin's retrospective at Ambika P3, London, 2013. This copy printed 2014. A signed certificate accompanies the work.
At the same time, one smaller set was made and sold to the Arts Council Collection. Burgin says that it was made under commercial pressure from his gallery at the time but that he no longer considers it the 'real' work. The whole point of the work, according to Burgin, is that it makes reference to poster dimensions, not fine art prints. He doesn't consider this set as belonging to any edition.
Burgin says, "In the context of 1976 the work set out to combine allusions to: 1) the practices of "street photography" and “social documentary”; 2) the practices of such glossy magazines as Vogue, in “reversing out” a “snappy” and often punning caption over a black & white fashion photograph; 3) the poster (in 1976 one rarely encountered photographs in art galleries, and those one saw were invariably printed small, in the tradition of the “fine print”)".
The first reprinting of UK '76 took place on the occasion of Burgin's retrospective at Ambika P3, London, 2013. This copy printed 2014. A signed certificate accompanies the work.
Exhibitions
Institute of Contemporary Art, London, 1976
Robert Self Gallery, London, 1976
John Gibson Gallery, New York, 1977
Stedelijk Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, The Netherlands, 1977
Museum of Modern Art, Oxford, 1978
Others to follow (list only includes early exhibitions of UK 76)
Publications
The 80s: Photographing Britain, Tate, 2024, Illustrated page 81Join our mailing list
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