Published on the occasion of David Zwirner's presentation of selections from "The Democratic Forest," this new book on William Eggleston's major work highlights 60 key photographs from the series. Eggleston's photography is "democratic" in its resistance to hierarchy: from Louisiana to Memphis, Tennessee, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Miami and Boston, these photographs treat people and objects equally, with the same significance and complexity of vision. Originally introduced by renowned writer Eudora Welty, known for her depictions of the south, this volume includes a reprint of her 1989 essay, along with new scholarship by Alexander Nemerov, a professor at Stanford University. With its selection of beautifully reproduced photographs--printed from new separations--this catalogue provides historical context for this monumental series, and works to shape our understanding of Eggleston's singular contribution to contemporary art.William Eggleston was born in 1939 in Memphis, Tennessee, where he continues to live today. Since the 1970s, his work has been the subject of solo exhibitions at prominent institutions worldwide, beginning with his 1976 show at The Museum of Modern Art, New York. In 2008, a major career-spanning survey organized by the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and Haus der Kunst in Munich then traveled to the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; the Art Institute of Chicago; and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Eggleston received a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in 1975 and has been the recipient of numerous notable awards, including the University of Memphis Distinguished Achievement Award (1996); Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography (1998); International Center of Photography Infinity Award for Lifetime Achievement (2004); the Getty Images Lifetime Achievement Award (2004); and the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (2016), among others.

The Aperture Foundation will honor Eggleston in October 2016.