Readers familiar with H. W. Janson’s History of Art textbook will immediately recognize the cover of this book as a comment on Janson’s ubiquitous text. With a hardbound cover that replicates Janson’s book, Fessler challenges the authority of his text and, through the change in the title, lets readers know that there is lesson to be learned in her book as well. On the last page of the book, after revealing the source of the quote, Fessler appends the words “Required reading, Art History 101, 102, and 103,” to make the point that survey textbooks are often used for multiple courses and in introductory classes, where students may not have the critical skills to question authoritative texts. Art History Lesson was initially published as an insert in American Art, a journal published by the National Museum of American Art.
Genetics Lesson, Fessler’s sixth Artist’s Book, is based on her 1990 Genetics Lesson installation and is her most structurally complicated artist’s book. It contains numerous gatefolds that allow for multiple readings of the story. — Artist's website.
Water Safety is the fourth artist’s book in Fessler’s True Stories Series. All of the books in the series were written in 1982 and offset printed at a later date. In this story, relationships are equated with water. Characters dive in but can suffocate and drown if they are not careful.--Artist's website