Based on the 2012 symposium ‘On Perfection’, held at the Whitechapel Gallery in East London, this book explores the ways in which artists engage with ideas of perfection, drawing on screenings, talks, performances, and discussions. The symposium featured the work of an eclectic group of artists and writers, who use photographic lenses of many kinds to create works that engage with or disrupt ideas of perfection. Framed from an artist’s perspective and spanning a diverse range of artworks that question how these ideas shape our personal identities and our social and political systems, On Perfection considers the multifaceted nature of lens-based practices. Edited by Jo Longhurst.

Includes contributions from:

Eva Stenram

Mark Durden

Clive Cazeaux

Julian Rosefeldt

Liam Devlin

Catherine Grant

Jo Longhurst

Ray Müller

Ceri Higgins

David Evans

Francette Pacteau

Leslie Dick

Audrey Wollen

Jonathan Whitehall

Michal Heiman

Oriana Fox

Dan Hill

Jane and Louise Wilson

Marco Bohr

Jo Longhurst enjoys international recognition for her compelling explorations of ideas of perfection and traditions of photographic practice through photography, video, performance and installation. She gained her Ph.D. by Practice from the Royal College of Art, London, and is currently a researcher at the Centre for Fine Art Research, Birmingham Institute of Art and Design. She was Leverhulme Fellow at the European Centre for Photographic Research, University of Wales, Newport between 2008–12.