Posted on: November 8, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Alix Lambert – Mastering The Melon: Projects By Alex Lambert / 2006 Trilce / 121 Pages /

Alix Lambert has done a lot of shit for not hitting the forty-year mark as of this point. This coffee table book is like a sampler into eir life. Each chapter seems to tell a different story through largely-visual (mainly pictoral) narratives. One of the most interesting segments in “Mastering the Melon” has to be the description of the different marriages that Lambert has been through. Each of the events that is described in this work is equally out there, with Lambert’s time spent as a basketball coach (done to a “T” by shaving eir head) being one of the many high points of the work. While each of these “installations” could have been made stronger by expanding them into their own work, this little smattering of information about each different approach is enough to get individuals interested in Lambert’s work, both past and present.

“Mastering The Melon” is a work that should be picked up by the art department of any self-respective university. It’s use as a coffee-table book is relatively strong as well, but for those individuals that want to find out some information about an artist that they might not normally be familiar with, “Mastering The Melon” is the book to pick up. The $30+ price means that it is a fairly serious purchase, but it is well under the $50 or $75 that a number of other artists charge for their works. In a way, I can see “Mastering The Melon” as being like a greatest hits collection. This means that there are snippets that are deemed important present that mark off different sections in Lambert’s career. While there may be installations and pieces that are not present here (and I couldn’t tell you if there were any missing), the most important of Lambert’s contributions are present.

The book is sufficiently large that individuals will take a few hours reading it the initial time, and will be able to go back at later times without feeling as if there is little left for them to devour. “Mastering The Melon” should be re-done, or subsequent volumes released, after each ten year increment after this work is published. This would allow fans of Lambert to see how ey has grown from the last period, as well as keep things close together that are coming forth at roughly the same time. Find this book at any respectable bookstore, look through it briefly, and make a decision whether to buy it. I would personally be on the side of picking it up, but understand that the list price may be a little high to some. Still, the challenges that Lambert makes to eir viewers is enough to make individuals come back for more, and make this a book that should be present on coffee tables and art libraries worldwide. Here’s to seeing more from Lambert in the near future, and hope goes forth to the continued testing of the water by Lambert’s revolutionary art. “Mastering The Melon” shows how ey has done that, and undoubtedly, further volumes will add to that.

Rating: 6.5/10

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