How to cut through the labyrinthine contemporary art world - from the complex and animated process starting in the mind of an artist to the end in a museum, collector's property, storage space or dump, via workshops, galleries and art fairs? The best way is to follow the only 'witness' to all these developments: the work of art itself. This book follows the 'life' of works by eight major contemporary artists, from Martin Creed's conceptual works and Gregory Crewdson's photographs (requiring crews and production values similar to that of big budget movies) to Marina Abramovic's performances and Barry McGee's motorway sound barrier graffiti (touching upon the ambivalent relationship between street art and the art market).