Irrational Judgments

An intimate study of the friendship and creative dialogue between two artists, offering an in-depth understanding of their work and the upheavals of 1960s New York Irrational Judgments examines the close friendship and significant exchange of ideas between Eva Hesse (19361970) and Sol LeWitt (19282007) in New York City during the 1960s. Taking its title from LeWitts statement Irrational judgments lead to new experience, this book examines the breakthroughs of the artists intertwined careers, offering a new understanding of minimal, post-minimal, and conceptual art amid the eras political and social upheavals. Kirsten Swenson offers the first in-depth discussion of the early critical developments of each artist: LeWitts turn from commercial design to fine art, and Hesses move from expressionist painting to reliefs and sculpture. Bringing together a wealth of documents, interviews, and imagesmany published here for the first timethis handsome publication presents an insightful account of the artists influence on and support for each others pursuit of an experimental practice. Swensons analysis expands our understanding of the artists ideas, the importance of their work, and, more broadly, the relationship of the 1960s New York art world to gender politics, the Vietnam War, and the city itself.