back

1941

Bruce Nauman

description

An American contemporary conceptual sculptor and artist. The art of Bruce Nauman includes a wide range of creative interests: performance and installation, photography and art video, works for the media, printing and industrial production. In all areas, the artist was attracted by the nature of communication, problems of the language and the role of the artist as a manipulator of visual symbols by the means of communication.

Nauman received numerous awards in several areas of artistic practice and an honorary doctorate in arts from the American Art Institute. His works are widely represented around the world at the expositions of the most prestigious museums and galleries. The monumental creations of Bruce Nauman inspired many other artists in the second half of the 20th century and continues to be in demand in the 21st century. In 2004, Time Magazine named him as one of the 100 most influential people in the art world. In 2006, according to the rating of Artfacts.net, Bruce Nauman was number one among living artists.

Key ideas:

– The work of Bruce Nauman is a challenge to the traditional idea that a painter or sculptor must have one recognizable style. Since the second half of the 1960s, even before receiving the Master of Arts diploma, the artist has created a large number of works in various media. They are united by Nauman’s conviction that the actual value of a work is more important than its aesthetics;

– For Nauman, a word, a phrase and a language as a whole are powerful tools of influence. They visualize thoughts, emotions, and desires, especially when presented through a hypnotic aura – in pulsating and luminous rhythms. Familiar vocabulary takes on different meanings if the presentation is bright colours that change the basic perception of words. In hundreds of his neon works, the author seeks to apply flickering advertising to attract attention to the global problems of society;

– Since the very beginning of his creative career, Nauman has often used his body and models as material. Having decided to include elements of everyday life in his work, he used human behavior as a starting point for sculptures, installations, performances and a series of art films. More often, these are simple repetitive actions, sounds and images dedicated to a specific problem;

– In his quasi-architectural compositions, the artist creates situations that intellectually or even physically disorient the viewer, offer a unique look at ordinary objects. Art becomes not just an object for contemplation but an actual product;

– The design of his works is often mocking, ironic or disrespectful towards the aesthetic tastes of the viewer. For example, developing the idea of art as a means of communication and the role of the artist as a communicator, he created “Self Portrait as a Fountain”. A huge portrait of the artist literally “spits” on the viewer – there we can see that he was interested in the works of Dada and Marcel Duchamp in particular;

– The works of Bruce Nauman are not easy to categorize according to styles or specific topics he used, but there are always features and elements characteristic of post-minimalism mixed with ideas of conceptualism and video art.

+ Read more

1941

1960

1965

1966

1968

1972

1979

1981

1988

1990

1993

1994

1999

2004

2009

Bruce Nauman was born in a small town in Indiana

Bruce Nauman was born in a small town in Indiana; however, the family of an engineer of General Electric often moved, and the future artist received primary education at schools in different cities.

Entered the University of Wisconsin in Madison

Entered the University of Wisconsin in Madison, where he studied physics and mathematics for four years. He got married in 1964; got son Eric (born in 1966) and daughter Zoe (1970).

Transferred to the University of California

Transferred to the University of California, studied with artists William T. Wiley and Robert Arneson. He worked as an assistant of artist Wayne Thiebaud. He graduated from the institution with a master’s degree in art.

The first solo exhibition

The first solo exhibition of fiberglass sculptures was held at the N. Wilder Gallery in Los Angeles. Nauman taught at the San Francisco Institute of the Arts, and later at the University of California, Irvine. He signed a contract with dealer Leo Castelli.

Was invited to participate in the exhibition "Documenta" in Kassel

For the first time was invited to participate in the exhibition “Documenta” in Kassel; received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, which allowed him to work in New York for one year. The L. Castelli Gallery (New York) and the K. Fischer Gallery (Düsseldorf) initiated a series of solo exhibitions of the artist. Nauman moved from Northern California to Pasadena.

The exhibitions

An exhibition organized by the Los Angeles Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York traveled throughout Europe. In 1972 and 1977, he participated in the “Documenta” in Kassel (Germany).

The artist moved to Pecos

The artist moved to Pecos, New Mexico.

The successful debut

After a successful debut at the Venice Biennale in 1978 and 1980, a large retrospective of the work took place at the Kröller-Müller Museum (Otterlo), then at the Kunsthalle Baden-Baden (Germany).

The artist moved to Galisteo

After the presentation of his works at the Whitney Biennale and in Houston (Contemporary Arts Museum), a successful exhibition of his creations was held at the Galerie Micheline Szwajcer (Antwerp). A year later, the artist moved to Galisteo, New Mexico, where he founded a house and a studio. He continued to live and work there with his wife, artist Susan Rotenberg.

He participated in the Whitney Biennale

The Des Moines Public Arts Foundation commissioned a bronze version of the Animal Pyramid (1989) – a stack of seventeen castings цфs installed at the Des Moines Arts Center, Iowa. A year later, he participated in the Whitney Biennale.

Became the winner of the Wolf Prize in the field of arts

Became the winner of the Wolf Prize in the field of arts; a retrospective exhibition of his works, organized by the Walker Center for the Arts (Minneapolis), was shown for two years in many cities across America and Europe. Three years later, his next major retrospective exhibition was held at the Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg, the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris, the Hayward Gallery in London and Nykytaiteen Museo in Helsinki.

The artist’s exhibition was held at the Museum of Modern Art

The artist’s exhibition was held at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Sperone Westwater Gallery, New York and Stockholm Konsthall (both in 1996).

The artist received the Golden Lion Award

The artist received the Golden Lion Award at the 48th Venice Biennale with the wording “for his contribution to art”; held an exhibition at the Donald Young Gallery, Chicago.

He was awarded the prize of the imperial family of Japan "Praemium Imperiale"

He was awarded the prize of the imperial family of Japan “Praemium Imperiale” in the field of sculpture; his exhibition “Raw Materials” was held at Tate Modern (London), then at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (2005), at the Tate Liverpool and the Milwaukee Art Museum (both in 2006).

Designed the US Pavilion at the 53rd Venice Biennale

Designed the US Pavilion at the 53rd Venice Biennale; received the Golden Lion for the best national pavilion. His exhibitions were held in Glasgow, St. Louis and New York. At the Philadelphia Museum of Art, 33 works by Nauman were shown.