Tell Them I Said No

Martin Herbert's Tell Them I Said No examines artists who stepped back from the art world, whether in protest, as a deliberate conceptual act, or out of necessity.

Herbert starts from the observation that much of an artist's job in a professionalized art system is being present, and he sets retreat against that self-marketing. The ten essays cover Lutz Bacher, Stanley Brouwn, Christopher D'Arcangelo, Trisha Donnelly, David Hammons, Agnes Martin, Cady Noland, Laurie Parsons, Charlotte Posenenske and Albert York. Sternberg Press published it in November 2016, 128 pages with 25 black-and-white illustrations, designed by Fraser Muggeridge Studio.

Herbert is a Berlin-based writer and critic and an associate editor of ArtReview. His earlier books include Mark Wallinger (2011) and The Uncertainty Principle (2014).