Rosalind Krauss’s 1999 essay "Reinventing the Medium" argues that while traditional artistic mediums have dissolved, artists like James Coleman reinvent the concept through a "technical support" that creates new, self-imposed rules [1, 2]. The text, which analyzes the post-medium condition through a critical reading of Walter Benjamin, can be accessed through academic databases such as JSTOR or within Krauss's book, A Voyage on the North Sea

  • Rosalind Krauss, The Optical Unconscious (1993)
  • Rosalind Krauss, Perpetual Inventory (2010)
  • Stanley Cavell, The World Viewed (1971)

The Knight’s Move: Marcel Broodthaers

Krauss illustrates this theory brilliantly through the work of Belgian artist Marcel Broodthaers, particularly his installation Musée d'Art Moderne, Département des Aigles. Broodthaers took the medium of the "museum"—an institution traditionally seen as a container for art—and treated it as an artistic medium itself.

Rosalind Krauss’s 1999 essay "Reinventing the Medium" theorizes the transition from modernist medium-specificity to a "post-medium condition," where artistic practices are defined by "technical supports" rather than material limitations. Drawing on Walter Benjamin, Krauss argues that technologically obsolete mediums can be redeemed and reinvented as new aesthetic possibilities, referencing artists like James Coleman and William Kentridge. Read the full text at The University of Chicago Press: Journals.

Krauss critiques the way globalization and the "culture industry" have flattened art into a generic experience. She believes that for art to remain critical and deep, it needs a "technical support"—a physical or conceptual framework that dictates how the work functions. By looking back at "obsolete" technologies, artists can find the friction necessary to resist the slickness of modern digital media. 🔗 How to Find the PDF

Searching for the "Rosalind Krauss Reinventing the Medium PDF" is often the first step for a graduate student preparing for a comprehensive exam or a researcher tracing the evolution of digital art theory. However, finding a legal, accessible PDF is only half the battle. The other half is understanding what Krauss means by “reinventing” a concept that many critics had declared dead. This article serves as a guide to the essay’s arguments, its historical necessity, and the ethical considerations of accessing the text.

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