‘This Ain’t Trash! This Is Art!’: See How Revered Artist Mark Bradford Transforms Throw-Away Papers Into Bold Paintings

Bradford worked in his mother’s beauty salon as a young adult,
and got the idea to incorporate end papers into his collaged
paintings. Eventually, he broadened his use of materials to include
posters, flyers, and other paper detritus from local
businesses.

“I start walking around, looking
for paper… I know it when I see it,” he told Art21 back in 2008 as part of the
“Extended Play” series, describing his process of discovering art
materials.

Not everyone, of course, gets his process, a fact he learned the
hard way when returning from a trip to Bali. “I had a whole lot of
this paper,” he told Art21. “I was going through customs, and the
official said, ‘why are you bringing back trash?’ I said, ‘This
ain’t trash, this is art!’”

Currently at the Modern in Fort Worth, an entire show is dedicated to Bradford’s use of
end papers and other printed matter, including 35 major “End
Paper” works from private and public collections as well as brand
new works made for the show.

Watch the video, which originally appeared as part
of Art21’s Extended Play series, below. “Mark Bradford: End Papers” is on view at the
Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth from March 8–August 9,
2020. 

This is an installment of “Art on Video,” a collaboration
between artnet News and Art21 that brings you clips of newsmaking
artists. A new series of the nonprofit Art21’s flagship series Art
in the Twenty-First Century is available now on PBS. Catch all
episodes of other series like New York Close Up and Extended Play
and learn about the organization’s educational programs
at Art21.org.

Read more https://news.artnet.com/exhibitions/mark-bradford-art-21-02-1793970