In 1940s occupied Paris, Jean Dubuffet began to champion a progressive vision for art; one that rejected classical notions of beauty in favor of a more visceral aesthetic. Taking a pioneering approach to materiality and technique, the artist variously blended paint with sand, glass, tar, coal dust and string. At the same time, he began to assemble a collection of art brut-work that was made outside the academic tradition of fine art- even visiting psychiatric wards from 1945 to collect work by patients. This book features texts from leading scholars and is accompanied by images that illuminate Dubuffet's attempts to move beyond the artistic expectations of his time. The works are grouped into six thematic sections that focus on specific series, from his graffiti-inspired "Walls" and his notorious portrait series, "People are Much More Beautiful Than They Think" to the "Corps de dames", a controversial series of "female" landscapes, and his anthropomorphic sculptures, "Little Statues of Precarious Life." Exquisitely produced, this celebration of Dubuffet's work embraces his world view that art is for everyone, not just the elite.

The catalogue to a groundbreaking exhibition of Dubuffet's seminal Art Brut and including historic essays by the artist published for the first time. This is the first book to be published on Dubuffet's early work in painting and sculpture in more than two decades. Organized by Mark Rosenthal, the exhibition focuses on Dubuffet's work from 1943 to 1959, and emphasizes the artist's anti-cultural approach in his depiction of subjects and his use of unorthodox materials. Several works by the French painter are on loan from private collections and museums.