Michelle Grabner
Encyclopedia
Michelle Grabner is an American
artist.
(Painting and Drawing) in 1984 and a M.A.
in Art History in 1987 from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. She received her M.F.A.
from Northwestern University
, Department of Art Theory and Practice in 1990. At NU she worked with the painters Ed Paschke
and William Conger. She is a Professor and Chair of the Painting and Drawing Department at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she has been teaching since 1996. From 1997 through 2003 she was on faculty at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
, Department of Art.
and Melissa Meyer put it in 1978) of women's domestic productivity."
Southfirst gallery website says “Grabner’s gesso and Flashe on canvas tondo paintings address repetition in their internal structure (optical and dot-based) and sheer profusion (there are over fifty). They are circular, from eight to eighty inches in diameter, and hung around the gallery like so much punctuation without a text. Are they aphasic? Her work evokes the history of abstraction as well as the feminine-gendered domestic patterning of washcloths, crocheted blankets and patterned paper towels. Perhaps they are about learning language, our first haphazard and repeated phonemes. Grabner invokes Gertrude Stein
’s work on composition for this installation; of its arbitrariness she writes “I am not opposed to [the tondo paintings] even being illustrations of Stein’s periods.”
Grabner is represented by Shane Campbell Gallery, Chicago; Rocket, London; Anne Mosseri-Marlio, Zurich; Gallery 16, San Francisco. One-person exhibitions include PS, Amsterdam; Southfirst, Brooklyn; Gallery 16, San Francisco; Green Gallery
East, Milwaukee; Allston Skirt Gallery, Boston; Richard Heller Gallery, Santa Monica; the Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield Hills, MI; Insitu Gallery, Aalst
, Belgium; Niagara Galleries, Melbourne; Ten in One Gallery, NY; MINUS Space, Brooklyn, NY; INOVA, Milwaukee, WI; Ulrich Museum, Wichita, KS; Hermetic Gallery, Milwaukee, WI, University Galleries, Illinois State, Normal, IL. Her work has been reviewed in Artforum
, Art in America
, Frieze
, Contemporary, New Art Examiner
, Art Issues.
Her work is in the collection of the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Milwaukee Art Museum
, The Museum of Contemporary Art
, Chicago; DaimlerChrysler
Collection, Berlin; Musee d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg Mudam Museum, Luxembourg; Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
A book on her work published by University Galleries of Illinois State University
titled “Remain in Light” ISBN 9780945558385 with essays by Lane Relyea and Michelle Grabner was published in 2008. In 2009 "Michelle Grabner's Black Circle Paintings, Metalpoint Drawings and Monoprints" was published by Poor Farm Press ISBN 978-0-578-00400-6. This book includes an essay by art historian Annika Marie titled "On Not Being Spectacular: Michelle Grabner's Black Circle Paintings."
, Stephen Berens, Cindy Bernard, Dike Blair
, Andrea Bowers, Yvette Brackman, Troy Brauntuch
, Alex Brown, Elizabeth Bryant, Elijah Burgher, Michael Byron, Lisa Caccioppoli, Gary Cannone, Todd Chilton, David Coyle, Paul Druecke
, Meg Duguid, Jeanne Dunning, Sam Durant, Tim Ebner, Mari Eastman, Sharon Englestein, Karl Erickson, Marcos Ramirez ERRE, Peter Fagundo, Andrew Falkowski, Rochelle Feinstein, Tony Feher, Joel Feldman, Ceal Floyer, Gabe Fowler, Gaylen Gerber, Matthew Girson, Jacob Goudreault, Terri Griffith & Serena Worthington, Joseph Grigely, Katharina Grosse, Wade Guyton
, Karl Haendel, Chris Hanson
and Hendrika Sonnenberg, Terence Hannum, Paula Hayes, Julie Hechtman, Adriane Herman, Alex Herzog, Matthew Higgs, Richard Holland, Steven Husby, Jessica Hutchins, Mitchell Kane, Clinton King, Jakob Kolding, Olga Koumoundouros, Thomas Lawson, Duncan MacKenzie, Corey McCorkle, Rodney McMillan, Dave Muller, N55
, Peter Newman, Jamisen Ogg, Olof Olsson, Aaron Parazette, Amy Park, Martin Parr
, Claire Pentecost, Joe Pfieger, Jan Van der Ploeg, Elizabeth Pulsinelli, Autumn Ramsey, David Reed, Scott Reeder, Tyson Reeder, Matthew Rich, David Robbins, Kay Rosen, Susie Rosmarin, Sherman Sam, Loul Samater, Stan Shellabarger & Dutes Miller, Joe Smith, Michael Smith, Chris Sperandio, Kirsten Stoltmann
, Ricky Swallow, Neil Taylor, Mungo Thomson
, Padraig Timoney, Nevin Tomlinson, Brad Tucker, Gavin Turk
, Luc Tuymans
, Lesley Vance, Philip Vanderhyden, Chris Vassel, Michael Velliquette, Amy Vogel, Dan Walsh, Rebecca Walz, Curtis Whaley, Kelly Williams, Kevin Wolff, Lars Wolter, B. Wurtz.
In 2008 Grabner and Killam purchased the Waupaca County Poor Farm in the Township of Little Wolf in Central Wisconsin. The building's 8000 square feet (743.2 m²) is dedicated to year long exhibitions. The Poor Farm, a non-profit art space and residency also hosts a dormitory building for artists and writers. During the summer of 2009 the Waupaca County Poor Farm was the site of The Great Poor Farm Experiment, a series of artworks installed and presented in and around the Poor Farm during the renovation of the main exhibition building.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist.
Life
Grabner received a B.F.A.Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...
(Painting and Drawing) in 1984 and a M.A.
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts is a high academic degree offered at many universities in Europe and the United States.A Master of Arts, Magister Artium, or Magister in Artibus may also refer to:...
in Art History in 1987 from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. She received her M.F.A.
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
from Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
, Department of Art Theory and Practice in 1990. At NU she worked with the painters Ed Paschke
Ed Paschke
Edward Francis Paschke was a Polish American painter. His childhood interest in animation and cartoons, as well as his father's creativity in wood carving and construction, led him toward a career in art...
and William Conger. She is a Professor and Chair of the Painting and Drawing Department at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she has been teaching since 1996. From 1997 through 2003 she was on faculty at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
, Department of Art.
Work
Her abstract work consists of repetitious vocabulary and simple mathematical ordering. Critic Barry Schwabsky writes that, “Her paintings refer to the traditionally feminine realm of the domestic by way of the metaphorically loaded imagery of fabrics and textiles--not only blankets and curtains but rugs, clothing, and so on. They might therefore be seen as a Pop rereading of the abstractionists' grid, in the tradition of the Dutch artist Daan van Golden's work of the '60s, or as continuing the recovery and reevaluation, in the feminist-inspired Pattern & Decoration art of the '70s, of the "secret language" and "covert imagery" (as Miriam SchapiroMiriam Schapiro
Miriam Schapiro is a Canadian-born artist based in America. She is a pioneer of feminist art. She is also considered part of the Pattern and Decoration art movement....
and Melissa Meyer put it in 1978) of women's domestic productivity."
Southfirst gallery website says “Grabner’s gesso and Flashe on canvas tondo paintings address repetition in their internal structure (optical and dot-based) and sheer profusion (there are over fifty). They are circular, from eight to eighty inches in diameter, and hung around the gallery like so much punctuation without a text. Are they aphasic? Her work evokes the history of abstraction as well as the feminine-gendered domestic patterning of washcloths, crocheted blankets and patterned paper towels. Perhaps they are about learning language, our first haphazard and repeated phonemes. Grabner invokes Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
’s work on composition for this installation; of its arbitrariness she writes “I am not opposed to [the tondo paintings] even being illustrations of Stein’s periods.”
Grabner is represented by Shane Campbell Gallery, Chicago; Rocket, London; Anne Mosseri-Marlio, Zurich; Gallery 16, San Francisco. One-person exhibitions include PS, Amsterdam; Southfirst, Brooklyn; Gallery 16, San Francisco; Green Gallery
Green Gallery (Milwaukee)
The Green Gallery is a contemporary art gallery located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.The gallery was founded by John Riepenhoff in the attic of his apartment in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood in 2003...
East, Milwaukee; Allston Skirt Gallery, Boston; Richard Heller Gallery, Santa Monica; the Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield Hills, MI; Insitu Gallery, Aalst
Aalst, Belgium
Aalst is a city and municipality on the Dender River, 19 miles northwest from Brussels. It is located in the Flemish province of East Flanders in the Denderstreek. The municipality comprises the city of Aalst itself and the villages of Baardegem, Erembodegem, Gijzegem, Herdersem, Hofstade,...
, Belgium; Niagara Galleries, Melbourne; Ten in One Gallery, NY; MINUS Space, Brooklyn, NY; INOVA, Milwaukee, WI; Ulrich Museum, Wichita, KS; Hermetic Gallery, Milwaukee, WI, University Galleries, Illinois State, Normal, IL. Her work has been reviewed in 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...
, Frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
, Contemporary, New Art Examiner
New Art Examiner
New Art Examiner was a Chicago-based art magazine. Founded in October 1973 by Derek Guthrie and Jane Addams Allen. Publication ceased in 2002.November 2011 will see the release of Essential New Art Examiner, an Anthology of representative articles and editors...
, Art Issues.
Her work is in the collection of the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Milwaukee Art Museum
Milwaukee Art Museum
The Milwaukee Art Museum is located on Lake Michigan in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.Beginning around 1872, multiple organizations were founded in order to bring an art gallery to Milwaukee, as the city was still a growing port town with little or no facilities to hold major art exhibitions...
, The Museum of Contemporary Art
Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago
The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago is a contemporary art museum near Water Tower Place in downtown Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The museum, which was established in 1967, is one of the world's largest contemporary art venues...
, Chicago; DaimlerChrysler
DaimlerChrysler
Daimler AG is a German car corporation. By unit sales, it is the thirteenth-largest car manufacturer and second-largest truck manufacturer in the world. In addition to automobiles, Daimler manufactures buses and provides financial services through its Daimler Financial Services arm...
Collection, Berlin; Musee d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg Mudam Museum, Luxembourg; Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
A book on her work published by University Galleries of Illinois State University
Illinois State University
Illinois State University , founded in 1857, is the oldest public university in Illinois; it is located in the town of Normal. ISU is considered a "national university" that grants a variety of doctoral degrees and strongly emphasizes research; it is also recognized as one of the top ten largest...
titled “Remain in Light” ISBN 9780945558385 with essays by Lane Relyea and Michelle Grabner was published in 2008. In 2009 "Michelle Grabner's Black Circle Paintings, Metalpoint Drawings and Monoprints" was published by Poor Farm Press ISBN 978-0-578-00400-6. This book includes an essay by art historian Annika Marie titled "On Not Being Spectacular: Michelle Grabner's Black Circle Paintings."
Writing
Essays and reviews by Grabner have been published in "Artforum," "X-tra," "Frieze," and "Modern Painters" among other periodicals and catalogs. "The Studio Reader" edited by Mary Jane Jacob and Michelle Grabner published by The University of Chicago Press ISBN 978-0-226-38961-5 will be released in spring 2010.The Suburban and The Poor Farm
Grabner and her husband Brad Killam run the artist project space called The Suburban in Oak Park. Since January 1999 they have worked with over one hundred and twenty artists. These artists include Vasco Araujo, Mike Banicki, BANKBANK (art collective)
BANK was an artists’ group active in London during the 1990s.-History and project:John Russell, Dino Demosthenous and Simon Bedwell founded the group in 1991. Dino Demosthenous left in 1992. In 1993, Russell and Bedwell were joined by Milly Thompson, David Burrows and Andrew Williamson. Burrows...
, Stephen Berens, Cindy Bernard, Dike Blair
Dike Blair
Dike Blair is an American artist.He graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago with an M.F.A., in 1977.He lives in New York City.-Exhibitions:*2010 Gagosian Gallery, New York...
, Andrea Bowers, Yvette Brackman, Troy Brauntuch
Troy Brauntuch
Troy Brauntuch is an American artist.He graduated from California Institute of the Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1975.He was Adjunct Professor at Columbia University and teaches at the University of Texas....
, Alex Brown, Elizabeth Bryant, Elijah Burgher, Michael Byron, Lisa Caccioppoli, Gary Cannone, Todd Chilton, David Coyle, Paul Druecke
Paul Druecke
Paul Druecke is an American artist best known for his project, A Social Event Archive . David Robbins describes the Archive as “a People’s Photography,” saying the pictures reveal “the theatricalizing influence of cameras upon the human community.” “... Paul Druecke is fascinated by the...
, Meg Duguid, Jeanne Dunning, Sam Durant, Tim Ebner, Mari Eastman, Sharon Englestein, Karl Erickson, Marcos Ramirez ERRE, Peter Fagundo, Andrew Falkowski, Rochelle Feinstein, Tony Feher, Joel Feldman, Ceal Floyer, Gabe Fowler, Gaylen Gerber, Matthew Girson, Jacob Goudreault, Terri Griffith & Serena Worthington, Joseph Grigely, Katharina Grosse, Wade Guyton
Wade Guyton
Wade Guyton is an American artist. Art critic Holland Cotter, writing in The New York Times said that Guyton, "takes modernism, with its touchy-feely spiritual pretensions, for a hard ride...
, Karl Haendel, Chris Hanson
Chris Hanson
Christopher David Hanson is an American football punter who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent in 1999...
and Hendrika Sonnenberg, Terence Hannum, Paula Hayes, Julie Hechtman, Adriane Herman, Alex Herzog, Matthew Higgs, Richard Holland, Steven Husby, Jessica Hutchins, Mitchell Kane, Clinton King, Jakob Kolding, Olga Koumoundouros, Thomas Lawson, Duncan MacKenzie, Corey McCorkle, Rodney McMillan, Dave Muller, N55
N55 (art collective)
N55 is a Copenhagen-based Scandinavian art collective which was founded in 1994. The name refers to an address in the Danish capital, Nørre Farimagsgade 55. Over the years, N55 have achieved international recognition for their projects...
, Peter Newman, Jamisen Ogg, Olof Olsson, Aaron Parazette, Amy Park, Martin Parr
Martin Parr
Martin Parr is a British documentary photographer, photojournalist and photobook collector. He is known for his photographic projects that take a critical look at aspects of modern life, in particular provincial and suburban life in England...
, Claire Pentecost, Joe Pfieger, Jan Van der Ploeg, Elizabeth Pulsinelli, Autumn Ramsey, David Reed, Scott Reeder, Tyson Reeder, Matthew Rich, David Robbins, Kay Rosen, Susie Rosmarin, Sherman Sam, Loul Samater, Stan Shellabarger & Dutes Miller, Joe Smith, Michael Smith, Chris Sperandio, Kirsten Stoltmann
Kirsten Stoltmann
Kirsten Stoltmann is an artist based in Los Angeles.Stoltmann was born in Milwaukee. Her art career began in video but has progressed to embrace object-making...
, Ricky Swallow, Neil Taylor, Mungo Thomson
Mungo Thomson
Mungo Thomson is a contemporary visual artist based in Los Angeles.-Work and Exhibition History:Thomson’s work pairs a West Coast conceptual sensibility with an interest in culture, cosmology and reception...
, Padraig Timoney, Nevin Tomlinson, Brad Tucker, Gavin Turk
Gavin Turk
Gavin Turk is a British artist and one of the Young British Artists . He often uses his own image in life-size sculptures of famous people.-Life and work:...
, Luc Tuymans
Luc Tuymans
Luc Tuymans is a contemporary artist who lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium. Tuymans is considered one of the most influential painters working today. His signature figurative paintings transform mediated film, television, and print sources into examinations of history and memory.-Life:Tuymans...
, Lesley Vance, Philip Vanderhyden, Chris Vassel, Michael Velliquette, Amy Vogel, Dan Walsh, Rebecca Walz, Curtis Whaley, Kelly Williams, Kevin Wolff, Lars Wolter, B. Wurtz.
In 2008 Grabner and Killam purchased the Waupaca County Poor Farm in the Township of Little Wolf in Central Wisconsin. The building's 8000 square feet (743.2 m²) is dedicated to year long exhibitions. The Poor Farm, a non-profit art space and residency also hosts a dormitory building for artists and writers. During the summer of 2009 the Waupaca County Poor Farm was the site of The Great Poor Farm Experiment, a series of artworks installed and presented in and around the Poor Farm during the renovation of the main exhibition building.
External links
- http://www.michellegrabner.com