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Michael Asher, the artist who exemplified institutional critique at its most minimal and whose marathon 'crif classes were legendary, died on 15 October aged 69. Like one of his ephemeral works when the exhibition is over, the sculptor with a penchant for dematerialisation has himself passed into the realm of pure concept.
Asher"s 'post-studio crif atthe California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) was made famous by former students such as Christopher Wlliams, Steven Prina, Sam Durant, Andrea Bowers, Dave Muller, Wlliam E Jones, Fiona Jack and Mike Kelley (who apparently hated it). Many artists saw the rambling weekly interrogations as an endurance test and rite of passage. It started at 10am and ended whenever the conversation was over, often after midnight People became artists while presenting their work in that room.
Asher also made remarkable works of art - none of which had titles. At Claire...