Juan Munoz Exhibition, Elvira Gonzalez Gallery, Madrid

Juan Muñoz

Elvira Gonzalez Gallery, Madrid

20 January - 30 March 2016

Juan Muñoz

One Laughing at the Other, 2000

Elvira Gonzalez Gallery presents an exhibition of work by JUAN MUÑOZ, a key figure in the revitalization of the human figure as a motif in contemporary sculpture. The exhibition marks the first show of Juan Muñoz’s work at the gallery.

Juan Muñoz includes a selection of sculptures, paintings and prints, dating from the early 90’s to 2000.. Taken together, the work in the exhibition offers a focused and intimate glimpse of Juan Muñoz’s unique vision.

Juan Muñoz’s work bridges the gap between classical and avant-garde sculpture. In the early 90’s, he began to introduce narrative into his work, staging scenes, creating spaces and presenting groups of sculptures that theatrically interact with each other. In the process, Juan Muñoz established himself as one of Europe’s most innovative artists.

The sculptures in the exhibition, in resin and polyester, belong to Juan Muñoz’s mature period, and include work that has never been exhibited in Spain previously, such as Two figures, one laughing at one hanging  (2000) and Two figures looking to a mirror dated 2001. Muñóz’s sculpture presents itself to the spectator as a challenge to his or her very existence. It brings together classical tradition with contemporary concepts into imagery that, whether in isolated figures or in groups, invokes solitude, alienation and the lack of communication as inescapable components of the human condition.

JUAN MUÑOZ (Madrid, 1953 - Ibiza, 2001) briefly studied architecture at the Polytechnical Institute of Madrid, later studying painting and print-making in the United Kingdom. In 1982 he traveled to the United States where he studied at Pratt University in New York, and where he came into contact with Richard Serra. Muñoz’s early influences included Naum Gabo, Pevsner, early Henry Moore, Robert Smithson, Giorgio de Chirico and Richard Serra. With numerous exhibitions in Europe and the US and in cities such as Chicago, New York, London, Madrid, Zurich, Washington and Bilbao, by the mid-80’s Muñoz had established himself as one of Europe’s leading new artists.

Juan Muñoz received Spain’s National Fine Arts Award in 2000, and in 2001 he transformed the colossal Turbine Hall at the Tate Modern in London (the first Spanish artist invited to do so) with his architectural installation Double Bind. The installation, which was to be Muñoz’s last, is considered one of his most important works, synthesizing all his central concerns: solitude, the articulation of space, reflections on the nature of identity, and difficulties of communication.

In addition to his sculptural work, Juan Muñoz also expressed himself in other media, such as drawing, music, radio and literature, collaborating with figures such as John Berger in a radio piece and with musicians such as Gavin Bryars, Bill Hawkes and Alberto Iglesias. Muñoz’s artistic fertile and wide-ranging artistic output was interrupted by his sudden and untimely death on August 28th, 2001.

GALERÍA ELVIRA GONZÁLEZ

General Castanos 3 - 28004 Madrid

www.galeriaelviragonzalez.com

Juan Munoz, Sculptures at Skarstedt Gallery, NYC

Juan Munoz, Sculptures 

Skarstedt Gallery, New York

Through June 9, 2012

Sculptures by Juan Muñoz on view at Skarstedt Gallery in New York is comprised of a selection of the artist’s iconic sculptures from the 1980’s and 1990’s. 

Juan Muñoz belongs to a generation of artists that dominate contemporary figurative sculpture and installation. The artist regarded himself a “storyteller,” making his sculpture a means by which to tell his stories. Muñoz treated each installation as unique believing a different context gave the works new power and meaning. His reoccurring characters, the dwarfs, the Chinese figures, the people on the balconies perform as actors rather than individual sculptures. One of his main concerns throughout his career has been the interplay between the figure and the surrounding architecture. His work, and in particular his large-scale installations, explores just that. 

Many Times is a work that evolves out of Juan Muñoz’s “conversation pieces.” Similar figures were first seen in the Palacio de Velazquez in Madrid, for the centerpiece installation, Square (Madrid), as part of an exhibition Muñoz staged there in 1996. These almost life-size, foot-less figures stand on their cut-off trousers interacting with one another in varied postures of gesticulation and conversation. Despite their uniformity in clothing and facial expression, signifying the stereotypical Western view of different ethnic groups, in this case the Chinese, Muñoz is able to create an ongoing and ever-fluctuating narrative simply through the body language of his figures and in turn their own juxtaposition in space. 

Juan Muñoz was a master at breathing new life into old and stereotyped motifs exemplified in such works as the solitary Krefeld Dwarf. The simple human presence of a lone dwarf is rejuvenated and despite his small stature, he stands alone with such gravitas, reminiscent of the dwarfs in Las Meninas by Velazquez, one of Muñoz’s heroes. Informed by Velazquez’s work, Muñoz referenced the important role of the dwarf in the Spanish court of the time: "The dwarf was the only person that could criticize the court, because of his physical distortion, he was allowed to distort or exaggerate reality."

JUAN MUNOZ was born in Madrid in 1953. His work has been exhibited extensively throughout the United States and Europe. Recent solo exhibitions of his work include those at the Museo Nacional de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, in 2009; Guggenheim Bilbao in 2008; Tate Modern, London, in 2008; the Hirshhorn Museum, Washington D.C., in 2001; the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern in 2001; and the Dia Center for the Arts, New York, in 1999. He participated in the Venice Biennale in 1986, 1993, and 1997 and in Documenta IX in 1992 and Documenta XI in 2002. In 2000, he was presented with the Premio Nacional de Artes Plásticas, Spain's most prestigious art award. 

SKARSTEDT GALLERY

20 E 79 NYC 10075, USA

www.skarstedt.com

Juan Munoz at Dia Center for the Arts, New York

Juan Muñoz: A Place Called Abroad
Dia Center for the Arts, New York
September 26, 1996 - June 29, 1997

Juan Muñoz's installation entitled A Place Called Abroad will open to the public at Dia Center for the Arts, 548 West 22nd Street, New York City, on September 26, 1996.

In creating A Place Called Abroad, Juan Muñoz will transform the 7,500 square foot gallery on Dia's fourth floor into a street-like environment with residual spaces populated by groups of figures. In pursuing his fascination with architecture, Muñoz deconstructs the gallery space, diagonally cutting through existing walls, in order to create a fictional street. Fragments of the pre-existing space remain visible throughout the installation. This overlay of past and present creates a habitat for Muñoz's figures.

In curator Lynne Cooke's 1995 essay for Parkett, Muñoz's figures are described as "withdrawn, absorbed or otherwise distracted" creating a "dislocated dialogue between spectator and artwork." In contrast, Muñoz's newly created figures engage with each other and transform the space into settings for exchange and display.

Juan Muñoz was born in 1953 in Madrid, Spain, where he continues to live and work. Since his first solo show in 1984, Juan Muñoz has exhibited widely. This is his first major one-person show in an American museum.

Major funding for this exhibition has been provided by the Lannan Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Spanish Cultural Ministry, Placido Arango and the members of the Dia Art Council.

Dia Center for the Arts
www.diacenter.org