Collective Volume Revisits Cy Twombly Kissing Incident

In summer 2007, Rindy Sam kissed a Cy Twombly painting at the Collection Lambert in Avignon, leaving a lipstick mark. The incident prompted a collective publication by Actes Sud, released this summer, which includes essays, interviews, and archival documents. The book features contributions from various authors, including a notable interview with restorer Barbara Blanc, who condemns Sam's act as a failure to understand the work's 'imaginative function.' Other texts cover the history of white in art, legal protection of artworks, and relational aesthetics. An essay by Denys Riout argues the affair is merely 'anecdotal art history' and does not tarnish Twombly or his work. The volume, though uneven, shows openness beyond the Collection Lambert's usual line.