The texts in this two-volume set trace the development of John Baldessari’s understanding of art from the early 1960s through to the present. His writings in this volume (1975–2011) address a broad range of topics, from the system he uses to classify material in the studio, his tributes to other artists, through money in the art world. Principle among Baldessari’s themes is his long-standing investigation into the similarity and possible interchangeability of word and image. In his view, words have the advantage of being the most abstract though paradoxically the most common and understood form of communication, thus making it possible to catch more of the world in the net—not just the picturesque. All the writings included here are motivated by that impulse and to ever expand the possibility of art.