AA BronsonA. C. McWhortleA. L. Bronson

1968-2009

Book, 17.5 x 11 cm, 180 p (ed. 2009), language: English, publishers: Taurus books (1968), Venus Library (1971), Media Guru (2009).
Materials:

Literary synopsis

This 2009 edition of this seminal pornographic novel – first published in 1968 under a series of different pennames including A.C. McWhortle, Allan Bronson, A.L. Bronson, and eventually AA Bronson – is designed for AA Bronson by Mike Gallagher and Gareth Long with a cover by Richard Prince. The narrative chronicles the sexual adventures of a 14-year-old black girl, relishing the graphic details of its decidedly politically incorrect subject matter. Originally penned by AA Bronson, A.S.A. Harrison, and a group of friends, the book was banned in Canada shortly after it was published for its radically subversive content.

Relation of the novel to the artist’s practice

Interviewer: The first Lena was published under the name A.L. Bronson. How did you come up with that name? Is that how you became AA?

Bronson: I didn't come up with the name. That's the name that was printed on the book when it appeared on the stands. I was never consulted. The book was seized by the police and burned soon afterward, and somehow everyone remembered it as AA Bronson, I think because of a joke about being first in the telephone book. - AA Bronson in reference to Lena

Novel website

About M HKA / Mission Statement

The M HKA is a museum for contemporary art, film and visual culture in its widest sense. It is an open place of encounter for art, artists and the public. The M HKA aspires to play a leading role in Flanders and to extend its international profile by building upon Antwerp's avant-garde tradition. The M HKA bridges the relationship between artistic questions and wider societal issues, between the international and the regional, artists and public, tradition and innovation, reflection and presentation. Central here is the museum's collection with its ongoing acquisitions, as well as related areas of management and research.

About M HKA Ensembles

The M HKA Ensembles represent our first steps towards initiating the public to today's art-related digital landscape. With the help of these new media, our aim is to offer our artworks a better and fuller array of support for their presentation and public understanding.