Fred Wilson (artist)
Encyclopedia
Conceptual artist Fred Wilson (born in 1954 in The Bronx
) describes himself as of "African, Native American, European and Amerindian" descent. Wilson received a MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant
in 1999 and the Larry Aldrich Foundation Award in 2003. Wilson represented the United States at the Biennial Cairo in 1992 and the Venice Biennale
in 2003. In May 2008, it was announced Mr. Wilson will become a Whitney Museum trustee replacing Chuck Close
.
Fred Wilson is represented by The Pace Gallery
in New York.
in New York, Wilson received a BFA from SUNY Purchase in 1976, where he was the only black student in his program. He says that he no longer has a strong desire to make things with his hands. “I get everything that satisfies my soul,” he says, “from bringing together objects that are in the world, manipulating them, working with spatial arrangements, and having things presented in the way I want to see them.”
An installation artist and political activist, Wilson's subject is social justice and his medium is museology. In the 1970s, he worked as a free-lance museum educator for the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the American Crafts Museum. Beginning in the late 1980s, Wilson used his insider skills to create a series of "mock museums" that address how museums consciously or unwittingly reinforce racist beliefs and behaviors.
In his 1992 seminal work co-organized with The Contemporary Museum, “Mining the Museum,” Wilson reshuffled the Maryland Historical Society’s
collection to highlight the history of Native and African Americans in Maryland. In 2001, he was the subject of a retrospective, Fred Wilson: Objects and Installations, 1979-2000, organized by Maurice Berger
for the Center for Art and Visual Culture, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), Baltimore County. The show traveled to numerous venues, including the Santa Monica Museum of Art
, Berkeley Museum of Art, Blaffer Art Gallery
(University of Houston), Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery (Skidmore College
Saratoga Springs, NY), The Addison Gallery of American Art
in Andover, Massachusetts, Chicago Cultural Center
, Studio Museum in Harlem
. For the 2003 Venice Biennale
, Wilson created a multi-media installation which borrowed its title from a line in "Othello
." His elaborate Venice work, "Speak of Me as I Am," focused on representations of Africans in Venetian culture.
For example, for his installation at the 2003 Venice Biennale
he employed a tourist to pretend to be an African street vendor selling fake designer bags - in fact his own designs. He also incorporated "blackamoors", sculptures of black people in the role of servants, into the show. Such figures were often used as stands for lights. Wilson placed his wooden blackamoors carrying acetylene torches and fire extinguishers. He noted that such figures are so common in Venice that few people notice them, stating, "they are in hotels everywhere in Venice...which is great, because all of a sudden you see them everywhere. I wanted it to be visible, this whole world which sort of just blew up for me."
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
) describes himself as of "African, Native American, European and Amerindian" descent. Wilson received a MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant
MacArthur Fellows Program
The MacArthur Fellows Program or MacArthur Fellowship is an award given by the John D. and Catherine T...
in 1999 and the Larry Aldrich Foundation Award in 2003. Wilson represented the United States at the Biennial Cairo in 1992 and the Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
in 2003. In May 2008, it was announced Mr. Wilson will become a Whitney Museum trustee replacing Chuck Close
Chuck Close
Charles Thomas "Chuck" Close is an American painter and photographer who achieved fame as a photorealist, through his massive-scale portraits...
.
Fred Wilson is represented by The Pace Gallery
Pace Gallery
The Pace Gallery is a New York City-based exhibition space. It was founded in 1960 in Boston by Arne Glimcher.-PaceWildenstein:From 1993 until April 1, 2010, the gallery became "PaceWildenstein," a joint business venture between the Pace Gallery and Wildenstein & Co....
in New York.
Career
An alumnus of the famous Music & Art High SchoolFiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts
Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts is a high school specializing in teaching visual arts and performing arts, located near Lincoln Center and the Juilliard School in the Lincoln Center district of Manhattan, on Amsterdam Avenue...
in New York, Wilson received a BFA from SUNY Purchase in 1976, where he was the only black student in his program. He says that he no longer has a strong desire to make things with his hands. “I get everything that satisfies my soul,” he says, “from bringing together objects that are in the world, manipulating them, working with spatial arrangements, and having things presented in the way I want to see them.”
An installation artist and political activist, Wilson's subject is social justice and his medium is museology. In the 1970s, he worked as a free-lance museum educator for the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the American Crafts Museum. Beginning in the late 1980s, Wilson used his insider skills to create a series of "mock museums" that address how museums consciously or unwittingly reinforce racist beliefs and behaviors.
In his 1992 seminal work co-organized with The Contemporary Museum, “Mining the Museum,” Wilson reshuffled the Maryland Historical Society’s
Maryland Historical Society
The Maryland Historical Society , founded in 1844, is the oldest cultural institution in the U.S. state of Maryland. The society "collects, preserves, and interprets objects and materials reflecting Maryland's diverse heritage." MdHS has a museum, library, holds educational programs, and publishes...
collection to highlight the history of Native and African Americans in Maryland. In 2001, he was the subject of a retrospective, Fred Wilson: Objects and Installations, 1979-2000, organized by Maurice Berger
Maurice Berger
Maurice Berger is an Americancultural historian, curator, and art critic.- Biography :Maurice Berger is a cultural historian, art critic, and curator. He is Research Professor and Chief Curator at the Center for Art, Design and Visual Culture, University of Maryland, Baltimore County. A student of...
for the Center for Art and Visual Culture, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), Baltimore County. The show traveled to numerous venues, including the Santa Monica Museum of Art
Santa Monica Museum of Art
The Santa Monica Museum of Art is an independent non-collecting art museum located in Santa Monica, California. It exhibits the work of local, national, and international contemporary artists....
, Berkeley Museum of Art, Blaffer Art Gallery
Blaffer Gallery
Blaffer Gallery is the art museum of the University of Houston. It was founded in 1973 and has won several awards, including the Coming Up Taller Award as part of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities.-History:...
(University of Houston), Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery (Skidmore College
Skidmore College
Skidmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college with an enrollment of approximately 2,500 students. The college is located in the town of Saratoga Springs, New York State....
Saratoga Springs, NY), The Addison Gallery of American Art
Addison Gallery of American Art
The Addison Gallery of American Art, as a department of Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, is an academic museum dedicated to collecting American art...
in Andover, Massachusetts, Chicago Cultural Center
Chicago Cultural Center
The Chicago Cultural Center, opened in 1897, is a Chicago Landmark building that houses the city's official reception venue where the Mayor of Chicago has welcomed Presidents and royalty, diplomats and community leaders. It is located in the Loop, across Michigan Avenue from Millennium Park...
, Studio Museum in Harlem
Studio Museum in Harlem
The Studio Museum in Harlem is an American contemporary art museum in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City, New York. It was founded in 1968 as the first such museum in the U.S. devoted to the art of African-Americans, specializing in 19th and 20th century work as well work of artists of...
. For the 2003 Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
, Wilson created a multi-media installation which borrowed its title from a line in "Othello
Othello
The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565...
." His elaborate Venice work, "Speak of Me as I Am," focused on representations of Africans in Venetian culture.
Major themes
Wilson's unique artist approach is to examine, question, and deconstruct the traditional display of art and artifacts in museums. With the use of new wall labels, sounds, lighting, and non-traditional pairings of objects, he leads viewers to recognize that changes in context create changes in meaning. Wilson's juxtaposition of evocative objects forces the viewer to question the biases and limitations of cultural institutions and how they have shaped the interpretation of historical truth, artistic value, and the language of display.For example, for his installation at the 2003 Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
he employed a tourist to pretend to be an African street vendor selling fake designer bags - in fact his own designs. He also incorporated "blackamoors", sculptures of black people in the role of servants, into the show. Such figures were often used as stands for lights. Wilson placed his wooden blackamoors carrying acetylene torches and fire extinguishers. He noted that such figures are so common in Venice that few people notice them, stating, "they are in hotels everywhere in Venice...which is great, because all of a sudden you see them everywhere. I wanted it to be visible, this whole world which sort of just blew up for me."
Selected exhibitions
- 2003 American Representative, United States Pavilion, 50th Venice Biennale, Italy
- 2001 "Fred Wilson, Objects and Installations 1979-2000," Studio Museum in Harlem, New York, NY; Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL
- 1995 Collectibles, Metro Pictures Gallery, New York, NY
- 1994 Insight: In Site: In Sight: Incite - Memory, Artist and the Community: Fred Wilson, South Eastern Center for Contemporary Art, Winston-Salem, NC
- 1993 "The Spiral of Art History," Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, IN
- 1992-3 "Mining the Museum: An Installation by Fred Wilson," The Contemporary & Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, MD
- 1992 "Panta Rhei: A Gallery of Ancient Classical Art," Metro Pictures, New York, NY
- 1991 Primitivism: High & Low, Metro Pictures, New York, NY
External links
- The Pace Gallery
- Biography, interviews, essays, artwork images and video clips from PBSPublic Broadcasting ServiceThe Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series Art:21 -- Art in the Twenty-First Century - Season 3 (2005). - Whitney brief from New York Times