Francesca Woodman401

Chris KrausImpure Alchemy

Francesca Woodman: Alternate Stories presents over forty vintage photographs by the pioneering American photographer, many of which have never before been seen. These photographs span the creative arc of the artist’s life, focusing on the varied thought processes, interests, and influences that inspired her work. Clustered thematically, the catalogue highlights previously unexplored relational contexts, drawing deeply on her formative years in Providence, Rhode Island, and Italy, and featuring previously unpublished photographs and archival materials.

In the newly commissioned essay “Impure Alchemy,” critic and novelist Chris Kraus explores Francesca Woodman’s life via her work, drawing upon her journals and letters as primary source materials, and exploring the technical means and literary strategies that animate her works.

Francesca Woodman: Alternate Stories portrays the artist’s lasting impact on generations of artists, and offers a compendium of images, which, as Kraus writes, still “inspire new mysteries and questions.”