ABSTRACT
The works of late 20th century and 21st century artist Richard Prince are examined for many of the themes discussed in this book: deception, objectification of women, relationships between the sexes, income inequality, the culture of celebrity, and luxury items. Prince engages in the practice of “appropriation,” an art movement of the 1970s, in which he uses the photography of other artists in works he claims as his own. He continued to do this long after appropriation was in vogue and he has fought numerous lawsuits. In his works, Prince mocks the relationship between husbands and wives, the sincerity of psychiatrists, and tests the gullibility of the art world, playing tricks on the public. In “Spiritual America” he appropriated the image of 10-year-old Brooke Shields, the property of another photographer. He displayed it alone in an art gallery and invited the art world to the opening. He was nowhere to be found! His works are of superb quality, many are beautiful, but his subject matter is perverse. Many of his works are sold for more than 4 million dollars.
