With “Walking through Baghdad with a Buster Keaton Face”, Thomas Galler presents the first comprehensive publication on his work on the occasion of the Manor Art Prize 2009 and the related exhibition at the Aargauer Kunsthaus in Aarau.
The catalogue, conceived as an artist’s book, is a well thought-out and successful illustration of Thomas Galler’s current work and his artistic strategy. Reference materials and works by the artist are presented on two parallel image layers. The photographs are taken from the exhibition at the Aargauer Kunsthaus and present over thirty current works. The reference material – the result of extensive research and an important part of the Galler’s artistic activities – is arranged in thematic groups, which are integrated between the photographs of the works. This arrangement allows the works to be read in the context of the exhibition and in dialogue with the research material from which they were often developed.
Hilde Teerlinck has conducted a conversation with the artist, which provides information about his strategies and interests. Margrit Tröhler deals with Thomas Galler’s filmic works, while Madeleine Schuppli discusses some important aspects of his work in her introduction.
Situated between artist's book and monograph, between overall installation and retrospective, the publication and exhibition provide a deeper insight into the impressive work of Thomas Galler.