Seeing and Believing is an illustrated overview of the work of contemporary Canadian artist Luis Jacob. An important figure on the Canadian conceptual art scene, Jacob has concentrated his career on the concept of 'seeing art'. Working as an artist, curator and writer, Jacob addresses issues of experience, interaction and site-specificity in his work, which has led to him exhibiting internationally at galleries including the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto and the Guggenheim, New York. With Seeing and Believing Jacob joins the debate on the positions of the museum and viewer in contemporary art, focusing on three of his own exhibitions: Tableaux Vivants at Fonderie Darling, Montreal in 2010; Pictures At An Exhibition at theMuseum of Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto in 2011; and L'oeil, La Breche, L'Image/The Eye, The Hole, The Picture at Musee McCord, Montreal in 2012. Images of the works featured and the exhibition spaces are accompanied by essays by each of the curators: Marie Fraser, David Liss and Anne-Marie Ninacs, respectively.
Accompanying these is an essay by Jacob himself and an introductory essay by the Artistic Director of the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, David Liss. Seeing and Believing is an important documentation of Jacob's work, as well as an insightful and informative perspective on this area of contemporary art. Also published in French, Seeing and Believing will appeal to artists, and anyone interested in curatorial/museum studies. A timely discussion on contemporary art, Seeing and Believing invites the reader to consider what is behind the image, and how it is informed by the museum/exhibition context and the viewer.