Before Pictures primarily focuses on art and life in the formative decade prior to 1977. Back then, he was convinced that art critics were the arbiters of what was “historically significant.” Reflecting back upon these early years, he reconsiders: “Coming to the understanding that my knowledge of art can never be anything but partial has been liberating. It has allowed me to write about what attracts me, challenges me, or simply gives me pleasure without having to make a grand historical claim for it.”

The Angel of History is divided into four sections. “At the Clinic” recounts Jacob’s adventure at a mental health clinic one night, as he seeks assistance for traumatic memories and issues that have begun to reassert themselves after years of normalcy. The most interesting of his symptoms is his conversations with Satan.