MAURI, Fabio. Manipolazione di Cultura / Manipulation der Kultur. Macerata: La Nuova Foglio Editrice, 1976.

MAURI, Fabio.
Manipolazione di Cultura / Manipulation der Kultur.
Macerata: La Nuova Foglio Editrice, 1976.

Folio (379 × 242 mm), pp.[92]. 42 black-and-white photographs, captions in Italian and German. Brown endpapers. Black textured paper-covered boards. Light tapping to top edge, light wear to endpapers at hinges as often given the thickness of the paper the book is printed on. Black printed dust-jacket, text in white; lightly rubbed with minor crease to top edge, closed tear to rear panel at head of spine-fold. Original price ticket tipped in to rear endpaper. A near-fine copy.

First edition. Manipolazione di Cultura is one of Fabio Mauri’s most significant works on the theme of the ideological instrumentalization of language. In this artists’ book, he appropriates photographs taken from German and Italian fascist sources. Each image has a brief descriptive caption which undermines the ideological content: they burn books, they hide their traces, proof of competence will be given, they film everything, they all have the same idea, they eliminate the champions of new ideas. Scarce.

Dematteis & Maffei, Libri d’artista in Italia: 1960-1998 (1691).