Marilyn Minter (born 1948) is famed for her glossy, hyper-realistic paintings, photographs and video works—seductive images that borrow the language of fashion and advertising photography, exploring the boundaries of desire, sensuality and body anxiety in the age of consumption. Close-up imagery of mouths, feet, splashes and puddles, rendered in high-gloss enamel on sheets of metal, subversively questions the pathology of glamour.

Produced in conjunction with the first major museum retrospective on her work, Pretty/Dirty examines every period of the artist’s 40-year career, from her beginnings with the controversial porn paintings, initially rejected by the critical establishment, to her later large-scale photorealistic works. Essays from the exhibition’s curators examine the trajectory of Minter’s development and her engagement with debates over the representation of the female body. Texts from musicians, artists, writers and curators speak to Minter’s wide-ranging influence include reflections from artist K8 Hardy, musician and author Richard Hell, and poet Eileen Myles, as well as an artist interview with writer Linda Yablonsky. Illustrated with hundreds of full-color reproductions, and with a complete biography and bibliography, Pretty/Dirty charts a new perspective on the career of this exciting and continually evolving artist.