Francis Alys: The Prophet and the Fly

This unique volume side-steps the performance work for which Francis Als is most recently recognized, presenting instead his recent paintings and drawings. Over 30 beautiful, encaustic-layered canvases illustrate passages from D. H. Lawrence, Plato, and other great writers, and, in a fluid exchange, are likewise illuminated by them. Als entered the art field by accident, through what he calls "a coincidence of geographical, personal and legal matters [that] resulted in indefinite vacations which, through a mixture of boredom, curiosity and vanity, led to my present profession." A compulsive wanderer, his personal explorations of the cities in which he finds himself have formed the basis for an eclectic body of work that has involved the varied mediums of documentary film and photography, video, painting, and performance, each put to work in a way that reflects specific social and economic conditions in a highly individual style. A close observer and occasional manipulator of the quirks of everyday life, Als responds to fleeting and contingent circumstances from the viewpoint of a passerby who is both involved and separate.

Francis Alys was born in Antwerp, Belgium, in 1959. Trained as an architect, Alys moved to Mexico in 1986 and within a few years had begun to work as a visual artist. Known initially for his paintings, Alys has also become a highly regarded video artist, interventionist and performance artist. His work has been seen in New York in 2002, where he staged a ceremonial procession commemorating The Museum of Modern Art's move from midtown Manhattan to its temporary home in Long Island City, Queens. Alys has also exhibited work in group exhibitions at the Hayward Gallery, London; the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, and at P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, New York.

Plato stands as one of the most influential and important philosophers of all time.