"The conditions of being art examines the activities of innovating contemporary art galleries Pat Hearn Gallery and American Fine Arts, Co., and the transnational milieu of artists, dealers, and critics that surrounded them. Drawing on the archives of Pat Hearn and Colin de Land--both independently important figures on the New York art scene of the 1980s and 1990s--and interviews with their peers, this publication illustrates the dealers' distinctive practices, significant exhibitions, events, and daily business. ... Featuring commissioned essays, archival materials and exhibition timelines for both galleries, this publication is the first book-length critical account of 1990s commercial gallery practices and vibrantly documents how Hearn and de Land tested notions of what an art gallery could be"--Page 4 of cover.