The Ringier Collection, one of Europe's most informed contemporary art collections, includes key pieces ranging from John Baldessari (whose seminal 1978 work lends it's title to this book) to Richard Prince, Fischli & Weiss, Urs Fischer, Rodney Graham, Karen Kilimnik and Trisha Donnely. Published concurrently with an exhibition at Kunstmuseum Luzern, "Blasted Allegories" functions as a visual essay rather than an exhaustive account of the last four decades of contemporary art. Illustrations of more than 200 works loosely map the contemporary art scene, following both mainstream and alternative currents. Edited by Beatrix Ruf, Director of Kunsthalle Zürich and Curator of the collection, this publication compiles essays that are particularly relevant to the changing meaning and value of art within the increasingly important contexts of globalism and the market.