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Michael Newman Analyzes Richard Prince's Untitled (couple) in New Afterall Publication

publication · 2026-04-22

Afterall has released a new publication analyzing Richard Prince's 1977 work Untitled (couple). Written by Michael Newman and drawing on a previously unpublished 1983 interview with Prince, the book examines how rephotography from a magazine extract the uncanny from the generic. Newman explores the work in relation to a shift in the image after conceptual art within American popular culture, connecting it to allegory, simulacrum, fiction, and personal identity in a society of commodity and spectacle. The publication is part of Afterall's One Work series and is available via MIT Press.

Key facts

  • Richard Prince's Untitled (couple) was created in 1977.
  • The work is a rephotograph of an image from a magazine.
  • Michael Newman wrote the analysis drawing on an unpublished 1983 interview with Prince.
  • The publication is part of Afterall's One Work series.
  • The book connects the work to allegory, simulacrum, and identity in commodity society.
  • Eric Banks of Bookforum praised Newman's linking of Prince's photos to Dan Graham and Warhol.
  • The publication can be purchased via MIT Press.
  • Other titles in the series include works on Sung Hwan Kim, Isa Genzken, Alfredo Jaar, and Donald Rodney.

Entities

Artists

  • Richard Prince
  • Michael Newman
  • Dan Graham
  • Andy Warhol
  • Sung Hwan Kim
  • Isa Genzken
  • Alfredo Jaar
  • Donald Rodney

Institutions

  • Afterall
  • MIT Press
  • Bookforum

Sources