Miguel Calderón
Encyclopedia
Miguel Calderón is a Mexican
artist, actor, and writer. He is best known for his work titled "Aggressively Mediocre/Mentally Challenged/Fantasy Island (circle one)" which was part of a 1998 exhibit and was bought by Wes Anderson
and shown in the film The Royal Tenenbaums
. He received his BFA
at the San Francisco Art Institute
in 1994. He has worked in paint, photography, video and installations.
Much of Calderón's work has been called "low-brow" and that he "has a knack for pushing crass stereotypes and clichés to absurd and provocative extremes." An article in Sculpture
magazine called him "something of an international phenom," and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
called him "[t] he enfant terrible of contemporary art in Mexico.".
He has had solo exhibitions at the Tamayo Contemporary Art Museum
in Mexico City, the Andrea Rosen Gallery in New York City
, the Museum of Natural History in Mexico City
, the San Francisco Art Institute
's Diego Rivera Gallery, and the 2004 São Paulo
Biennale.
He has had work at, among other places, the Guggenheim Museum
's "Air: Projections of Mexico" exhibit, the "Prometer no empobrece: arte contemporáneo mexicano" show at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia
in Madrid
, the P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center
in New York City
, the 2005 Sharjah Biennale, the 2005 Yokohama
Triennale, the 2006 Busan
Biennale, and had a film commissioned for the 2006 Frieze Art Fair
in London. In 2007, Calderon exhibited with several other Latin American Artists at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
.
He has also worked in collaboration with the English artist Nick Waplington
producing a series of photographs "Sherwin Williams/The garden of Suburban delights" and the graphic novel "Terry Painter" which was exhibited in New York and London.
Calderón's paintings in The Royal Tenenbaums
are discussed on WNYC
and Public Radio International
's Studio 360
radio show, and are also shown as part of the bonus features of the film's DVD
. He was also interviewed in Contemporary magazine.
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
artist, actor, and writer. He is best known for his work titled "Aggressively Mediocre/Mentally Challenged/Fantasy Island (circle one)" which was part of a 1998 exhibit and was bought by Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson
Wesley Wales Anderson is an American film director, screenwriter, actor, and producer of features, short films and commercials....
and shown in the film The Royal Tenenbaums
The Royal Tenenbaums
The Royal Tenenbaums is a 2001 American comedy-drama film directed by Wes Anderson and co-written with Owen Wilson. The film stars Gene Hackman and Anjelica Huston, with Danny Glover, Bill Murray, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson, and Owen Wilson....
. He received his BFA
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...
at the San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute is a school of higher education in contemporary art with the main campus in the Russian Hill district of San Francisco, California. Its graduate center is in the Dogpatch neighborhood. The private, non-profit institution is accredited by WASC and is a member of the...
in 1994. He has worked in paint, photography, video and installations.
Much of Calderón's work has been called "low-brow" and that he "has a knack for pushing crass stereotypes and clichés to absurd and provocative extremes." An article in Sculpture
Sculpture (magazine)
Sculpture ia a magazine published by the International Sculpture Center , a nonprofit organization founded in 1960 to promote interest and understanding of the art form. The organization is located at the old New Jersey Fairgrounds in Hamilton, New Jersey...
magazine called him "something of an international phenom," and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is a modern art museum located in San Francisco, California. A nonprofit organization, SFMOMA holds an internationally recognized collection of modern and contemporary art and was the first museum on the West Coast devoted solely to 20th century art...
called him "
He has had solo exhibitions at the Tamayo Contemporary Art Museum
Tamayo Contemporary Art Museum
Mexico's Tamayo Contemporary Art Museum , located on Paseo de la Reforma, in Mexico City, was opened in 1981 as a repository for the collection that Rufino Tamayo and his wife Olga acquired during their lifetimes and ultimately gifted to the nation...
in Mexico City, the Andrea Rosen Gallery in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, the Museum of Natural History in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, the San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute is a school of higher education in contemporary art with the main campus in the Russian Hill district of San Francisco, California. Its graduate center is in the Dogpatch neighborhood. The private, non-profit institution is accredited by WASC and is a member of the...
's Diego Rivera Gallery, and the 2004 São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
Biennale.
He has had work at, among other places, the Guggenheim Museum
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is a well-known museum located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. It is the permanent home to a renowned collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions...
's "Air: Projections of Mexico" exhibit, the "Prometer no empobrece: arte contemporáneo mexicano" show at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía
The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía is the official name of Spain's national museum of 20th century art . The museum was officially inaugurated on September 10, 1992 and is named for Queen Sofia of Spain...
in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, the P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center
P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center
MoMA PS1 is one of the largest and oldest institutions in the United States dedicated solely to contemporary art. It is located in the Long Island City neighborhood of New York City...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, the 2005 Sharjah Biennale, the 2005 Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
Triennale, the 2006 Busan
Busan
Busan , formerly spelled Pusan is South Korea's second largest metropolis after Seoul, with a population of around 3.6 million. The Metropolitan area population is 4,399,515 as of 2010. It is the largest port city in South Korea and the fifth largest port in the world...
Biennale, and had a film commissioned for the 2006 Frieze Art Fair
Frieze Art Fair
Frieze Art Fair is an international contemporary art fair that takes place every October in London's Regent's Park. The fair is staged by Amanda Sharp and Matthew Slotover, the publishers of frieze magazine...
in London. In 2007, Calderon exhibited with several other Latin American Artists at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is a modern art museum located in San Francisco, California. A nonprofit organization, SFMOMA holds an internationally recognized collection of modern and contemporary art and was the first museum on the West Coast devoted solely to 20th century art...
.
He has also worked in collaboration with the English artist Nick Waplington
Nick Waplington
The artist and photographer Nick Waplington was born 1970 in Aden and lives in New York City. The eldest of three children, he traveled extensively during his childhood as his father worked as a scientist in the nuclear industry. He studied art at Worthing Art College, Trent Poly and The Royal...
producing a series of photographs "Sherwin Williams/The garden of Suburban delights" and the graphic novel "Terry Painter" which was exhibited in New York and London.
Calderón's paintings in The Royal Tenenbaums
The Royal Tenenbaums
The Royal Tenenbaums is a 2001 American comedy-drama film directed by Wes Anderson and co-written with Owen Wilson. The film stars Gene Hackman and Anjelica Huston, with Danny Glover, Bill Murray, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson, and Owen Wilson....
are discussed on WNYC
WNYC
WNYC is a set of call letters shared by a pair of co-owned, non-profit, public radio stations located in New York City.WNYC broadcasts on the AM band at 820 kHz, and WNYC-FM is at 93.9 MHz. Both stations are members of National Public Radio and carry distinct, but similar news/talk programs...
and Public Radio International
Public Radio International
Public Radio International is a Minneapolis-based American public radio organization, with locations in Boston, New York, London and Beijing. PRI's tagline is "Hear a different voice." PRI is a major public media content creator and also distributes programs from many sources...
's Studio 360
Studio 360
Studio 360 is an American weekly public radio program about media, the arts and culture hosted by novelist Kurt Andersen and produced by PRI Public Radio International and WNYC in New York City. The program's stated goal is to "Get inside the creative mind" and uses arts and culture as a lens to...
radio show, and are also shown as part of the bonus features of the film's DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
. He was also interviewed in Contemporary magazine.