Mark Dean Veca
Encyclopedia
Mark Dean Veca is an American artist (b.1963) based in Brooklyn
, New York
. He creates paintings, drawings and large-scale installations.
, and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Otis College of Art and Design
in Los Angeles
in 1985.
Veca has exhibited throughout the United States
, Europe
, and Japan
at institutions such as the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, PS 1 Contemporary Art Center, the Brooklyn Museum
, the Bronx Museum of the Arts
, and the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
. His work has been reviewed in numerous publications including The New York Times
, Artforum
, Art in America
, Art Review, Juxtapoz, and Flash Art.
Veca conducted one-on-one master critiques with undergraduate and graduate Fine Arts students at Otis College of Art and Design in the fall of 2008 as part of the Jennifer Howard Coleman Distinguished Lectureship and Residency.
He currently lives in Los Angeles and his next solo exhibition is scheduled to open Sept. 18 at Western Project.
He is widely recognized for his all-encompassing installations that surround the viewer and incite a sense of awe. Revealing fantastical, humorous, aggressive, or sexual imagery with both frenzy and pattern-like precision, his works often recall a modernized type of toile
painting.
In the 1998 catalogue for Veca’s El Gloominator exhibition, Steve Mitchell asserts, “Veca works in the meticulous tradition of the fresco painter to produce an image that paradoxically evokes the immediacy of the graffiti
artist.”
Carlo McCormick states in a Juxtapoz magazine article that within the artist’s installation work, “confines create ideas, obstacles dictate illusions, and the proliferation of optic information ignites a kind of brain-searing explosion.”
In 2004, Veca was commissioned by Nike
to design an installation as well as a limited edition product series. Entitled Pulsation, the work was exhibited at 255 in New York.
Veca’s most recent solo exhibition, Imbroglio (October 20 – November 17, 2007), was held at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery and was his most ambitious New York exhibition thus far. Veca presented 17 new paintings on panel, which were incorporated into an installation.
Grant. Amongst his many honors, Veca has thrice received the New York Foundation for the Arts
Fellowship in painting and has carried out artist residencies for institutions such as the Bronx Museum
, the MacDowell Colony
, and Villa Montalvo
.
2008
2007
2006
2004
2003
2002
2000
1999
1998
2005
2004
2003
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He creates paintings, drawings and large-scale installations.
Biography
Mark Dean Veca was born in Shreveport, LouisianaShreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
, and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Otis College of Art and Design
Otis College of Art and Design
Otis College of Art and Design is an art and design college in Los Angeles, California.The school's programs, accredited by WASC and National Association of Schools of Art and Design, include four-year BFA degrees in illustration, fine arts, graphic design, architecture, landscape design, interior...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in 1985.
Veca has exhibited throughout the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
at institutions such as the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, PS 1 Contemporary Art Center, the Brooklyn Museum
Brooklyn Museum
The Brooklyn Museum is an encyclopedia art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At 560,000 square feet, the museum holds New York City's second largest art collection with roughly 1.5 million works....
, the Bronx Museum of the Arts
Bronx Museum of the Arts
The Bronx Museum of the Arts is a cultural institution located in the New York City borough of The Bronx. The museum focuses on contemporary and 20th century works created by American artists, and it has hosted exhibitions of art and design from Latin America, Africa and Asia...
, and the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts is a multi-disiplinary contemporary arts center in San Francisco, California, United States. Located in Yerba Buena Gardens, YBCA features visual art, performance, and film/video that celebrates local, national, and international artists and the Bay Area's diverse...
. His work has been reviewed in numerous publications including The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Artforum
Artforum
Artforum is an international monthly magazine specializing in contemporary art.-Publication:The magazine is published ten times a year, September through May, along with an annual summer issue...
, Art in America
Art in America
Art in America is an illustrated monthly, international magazine concentrating on the contemporary art world, including profiles of artists and genres, updates about art movements, show reviews and event schedules. It is designed for collectors, artists, dealers, art professionals and other...
, Art Review, Juxtapoz, and Flash Art.
Veca conducted one-on-one master critiques with undergraduate and graduate Fine Arts students at Otis College of Art and Design in the fall of 2008 as part of the Jennifer Howard Coleman Distinguished Lectureship and Residency.
He currently lives in Los Angeles and his next solo exhibition is scheduled to open Sept. 18 at Western Project.
Veca’s work
Veca is known for creating paintings, drawings and installations that portray surreal cartoons, psychedelic landscapes, and pop culture iconography while also being inspired by long-established decorative motifs.He is widely recognized for his all-encompassing installations that surround the viewer and incite a sense of awe. Revealing fantastical, humorous, aggressive, or sexual imagery with both frenzy and pattern-like precision, his works often recall a modernized type of toile
Toile
Toile is the name of a fabric that entered the English language around the 16th century from a French word meaning "linen cloth" or "canvas" — particularly cloth or canvas for painting on...
painting.
In the 1998 catalogue for Veca’s El Gloominator exhibition, Steve Mitchell asserts, “Veca works in the meticulous tradition of the fresco painter to produce an image that paradoxically evokes the immediacy of the graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
artist.”
Carlo McCormick states in a Juxtapoz magazine article that within the artist’s installation work, “confines create ideas, obstacles dictate illusions, and the proliferation of optic information ignites a kind of brain-searing explosion.”
In 2004, Veca was commissioned by Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
to design an installation as well as a limited edition product series. Entitled Pulsation, the work was exhibited at 255 in New York.
Veca’s most recent solo exhibition, Imbroglio (October 20 – November 17, 2007), was held at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery and was his most ambitious New York exhibition thus far. Veca presented 17 new paintings on panel, which were incorporated into an installation.
Awards
Most recently, Veca was named Honoree of the fall 2008 Jennifer Howard Coleman Distinguished Lectureship and Residency at Otis College of Art and Design. In 2006, he was awarded a Pollock-Krasner FoundationPollock-Krasner Foundation
The Pollock-Krasner Foundation was established in 1985 for the purpose of providing financial assistance to individual working artists of established ability. It was established at the bequest of Lee Krasner, who was an American abstract expressionist painter and the widow of fellow painter Jackson...
Grant. Amongst his many honors, Veca has thrice received the New York Foundation for the Arts
New York Foundation for the Arts
The New York Foundation for the Arts was created in conjunction the in 1971. The organization gives grants to individual artists and writers and developing arts organizations with a mission to '.'-NYFA's Programs:...
Fellowship in painting and has carried out artist residencies for institutions such as the Bronx Museum
Bronx Museum of the Arts
The Bronx Museum of the Arts is a cultural institution located in the New York City borough of The Bronx. The museum focuses on contemporary and 20th century works created by American artists, and it has hosted exhibitions of art and design from Latin America, Africa and Asia...
, the MacDowell Colony
MacDowell Colony
The MacDowell Colony is an art colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire, U.S.A., founded in 1907 by Marian MacDowell, pianist and wife of composer Edward MacDowell. She established the institution and its endowment chiefly with donated funds...
, and Villa Montalvo
Villa Montalvo
Villa Montalvo is an Italian Mediterranean style mansion nestled in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, in Saratoga, California, United States. It was constructed from 1912 to 1914 by California statesman and businessman James Duval Phelan. After Phelan's death, it was donated to the state...
.
Solo exhibitions
2009- Revenge of Phantasmagoria, Instituto Cultural de Cabañas, Guadalajara, Mexico,(Organized by the Ben Maltz GalleryBen Maltz GalleryThe Ben Maltz Gallery at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles is a professional art space that presents group and solo exhibitions in a variety of media. The Gallery’s main focus is showcasing contemporary art that pushes the boundaries of form and subject matter in the context of national...
at Otis College of Art and Design)http://www.otis.edu/assets/user/Ben%20Maltz%20Gallery/MDV_Mexico_PR.pdf, November 28, 2009 - January 10, 2010. - University Art Gallery, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA, January 30–15 March 2009.
2008
- Ben Maltz GalleryBen Maltz GalleryThe Ben Maltz Gallery at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles is a professional art space that presents group and solo exhibitions in a variety of media. The Gallery’s main focus is showcasing contemporary art that pushes the boundaries of form and subject matter in the context of national...
, Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA, October 11 – December 6, 2008.
2007
- Imbroglio, Jonathan LeVine Gallery, New York, NY
2006
- Picturing Florida, Schmidt Center Gallery, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL (with Ellen Harvey)
2004
- Pulsation, 255 Elizabeth Street, New York, NY, Commissioned by Nike
2003
- Pleasure Machine, Mars Gallery, TokyoTokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan - Royale, Jessica Murray Projects, Brooklyn, NY
2002
- Daniel Silverstein Gallery, New York, NY (with Cotter Luppi)
- Scope Art Fair, curated by David Hunt, New York, NY
- Toile de Brooklyn, g-module, Paris, France
2000
- Magnificent Compulsion, Mark Moore Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
- Harum-Scarum, Gallery at Villa Montalvo, Saratoga, CA
1999
- Funky Jungle, DiverseWorks Art Space, Houston, TX
- Mark Dean Veca: New Paintings, Kravets/Wehby Gallery, New York, NY
1998
- El Gloominator, State University of New York at Buffalo Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY
- Gummi Grotto, Kravets/Wehby Gallery, New York, NY
Selected group exhibitions – last 5 years
2006- Otis: Nine Decades of Los Angeles Art, Los Angeles Municipal Art GalleryLos Angeles Municipal Art GalleryThe Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery is located in the Barnsdall Art Park in Los Angeles, California. It focuses on the arts and artists of Southern California.-Main building:...
, Los Angeles, CA
- Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo!, Kunstverein Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany; traveled to Kunstverein Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany and Cercle Munster, Munster, Luxembourg
2005
- Erotic Drawing, DiverseWorks, Houston, TX; traveled to the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT
2004
- Open House: Working in Brooklyn, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, NY
- NextNext Visual Art, Brooklyn Academy of MusicBrooklyn Academy of MusicBrooklyn Academy of Music is a major performing arts venue in Brooklyn, a borough of New York City, United States, known as a center for progressive and avant garde performance....
, Brooklyn, NY - The Ludovico Treatment, Muller de Chiara Gallery, BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany - Finesse, Catharine Clark Gallery, San Francisco, CA
- Impact: New Mural Projects, PPOW Gallery, New York, NY
- Grotto II, Jessica Murray Projects, Brooklyn, NY
2003
- Pavilion, Bloomberg Space, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England - Labor Day, RARE, New York, NY
- Cartoon, Riva Gallery, New York, NY
- Selections 2003, Muller De Chiara Gallery, Berlin, Germany
- Metastasize, Bronx River Art Center, Bronx, NY
- On and Off the Wall, Phillips de Pury & Luxembourg, New York, NY
- Blue-Mars 1993-2003, Mars Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- Drawings and Works on Paper: SF/NY/LA, San Luis Obispo Art Center, San Luis Obispo, CA