Jim Dine: Selected Prints 1996-2006

From his pioneering 1960s Happenings and Pop art assemblages to his Expressionistic works from the 1970s and his current fascination with the story of Pinocchio, Jim Dine manages to maintain relevance in the art world despite, or perhaps because of, the constant changes he has made in his work during the last 40 years. Drawing and printmaking have had a central place in Dine's oeuvre since the 70s, when he began collaborating in earnest with master printers throughout the U.S. and Europe. This pocket-sized, affordable publication is a collection of 47 prints, two illustrated books and a recently published portfolio, all of which feature Dine's signature iconography: hearts, robes, self-portraits, flowers and birds. Of particular interest are the Pinocchio prints, as Dine has spent the last several years engaged in a visual translation of the mythology and archetypal imagery in Carlo Collodi's classic tale. As Dine states: "His poor burned feet, his misguided judgment, his vanity about his large nose, his temporary donkey ears all add up to the real sum of his parts. In the end, it is his great heart that holds me. I have carried him on my back like a landscape since I was six years old."