Back to the Present: 50 Years of Free Expression with Franklin Furnace

A 50th-anniversary celebration of the legendary arts institution Franklin Furnace. This visually rich volume captures five decades of boundary-breaking art and the ongoing fight to defend creative freedom.

In 1976, at a time when experimental art struggled to find institutional support, artist Martha Wilson founded Franklin Furnace Archive, Inc. in downtown Manhattan. What began as an artist-run space devoted to serving emerging artists and their overlooked work quickly became one of the most vital platforms for avant-garde art in the United States.

As Franklin Furnace celebrates its fiftieth year, this landmark volume traces its extraordinary impact—from the gritty energy of the downtown ’70s art scene through the culture wars of the ’80s and ’90s and into today’s renewed debates around censorship, free speech, and artistic freedom.

Edited by Martha Wilson, this richly illustrated collection brings together:

• Rare, never-before-seen archival materials
• First-person accounts from artists on the front lines of cultural conflict
• Reprinted historical texts
• Newly commissioned essays
• And work by groundbreaking figures, including Jenny Holzer, Ed Ruscha, Ana Mendieta, Karen Finley, Claes Oldenburg, Eric Bogosian, and many others, whose practices reshaped contemporary art.

Both an archive and a call to action, Back to the Present documents how artists challenged institutional norms, defended First Amendment rights, and insisted on the power of art as a tool for social change.

For readers interested in contemporary art, cultural history, and the politics of social justice, this book offers an immersive look at a legendary institution—and a reminder that the struggle for creative freedom is far from over.

DEFINITIVE & VIBRANT RECORD: With rare images and previously unpublished documents, this is a rich record of New York’s avant-garde art scene from the 1970s to the present.

50th ANNIVERSARY TRIBUTE: A dynamic volume celebrating Franklin Furnace—one of the nation’s most respected arts institutions and a champion of cutting-edge performance artists, avant-garde art practitioners, and their publications since its founding in 1976.

TIMELY AND RELEVANT: Free speech, censorship, and First Amendment rights are urgent subjects. This exploration of artistic activism provides powerful insight for our current climate.

Perfect for:

• Contemporary artists
• Art historians and critics
• Students of art history, visual culture, and performance studies
• Readers interested in the Culture Wars and First Amendment debates
• Anyone passionate about the intersection of art and politics
• Collectors of art books and cultural history
• Future culture warriors