Thomas Schütte
Encyclopedia
Thomas Schütte is a German contemporary artist. From 1973 to 1981 he studied art at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf
alongside Katharina Fritsch
under Gerhard Richter
and Fritz Schwegler
. He lives and works in Düsseldorf.
mounted a three-part survey of Schütte's work. The first, "Scenewright" (September 24, 1998 - January 24, 1999) focused on theater-related projects. "Gloria in Memoria" (February 4 - June 13, 1999) dealt with death with a somewhat morbid sense of humor, as in his memorial to Alain Colas, which pictures the famous sailor and daredevil bobbing in the water, surprised at his own death. The third installment, "In Media Res", included large ceramic heads and massive, battered bronze nudes. In 2007 he made Model for a Hotel for the fourth plinth of Trafalgar Square
.
Schütte had one-man shows at venues including the Kunstmuseum Winterthur
, Winterthur, Switzerland (2003) (later travelled to the Musée de Grenoble and K21, Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen
, Düsseldorf); Folkwang Museum, Essen (2002); Sammlung Goetz, Munich (2001); a survey in three parts at Dia Center for the Arts, New York (1998-2000); Serralves Foundation
, Portugal (1998); De Pont Foundation, Tilburg, (1998); Kunsthalle, Hamburg (1994); ARC Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1990); as well as the Stedelijk van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, (1990).
Schütte participated in documenta
in Kassel three times; in 2005, he was awarded the Golden Lion for Best Artist at the Venice Biennial.
, MoMA
and the Art Institute of Chicago
.
Kunstakademie Düsseldorf
The Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, formerly Staatliche Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, is the Arts Academy of the city of Düsseldorf. It is well known for having produced many famous artists, such as Joseph Beuys, Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, Thomas Demand, and Andreas Gursky...
alongside Katharina Fritsch
Katharina Fritsch
Katharina Fritsch is a contemporary sculptor. She currently lives and works in Düsseldorf.-Life:...
under Gerhard Richter
Gerhard Richter
Gerhard Richter is a German visual artist. Richter has simultaneously produced abstract and photorealistic painted works, as well as photographs and glass pieces, thus undermining the concept of the artist’s obligation to maintain a single cohesive style.- Biography :Gerhard Richter was born in...
and Fritz Schwegler
Fritz Schwegler
Fritz Schwegler is a German painter, graphic artist, sculptor and musician.Born in the Swabian town of Breech near Göppingen, Schwegler was first apprenticed as a joiner to his father. He then traveled through the whole of Europe for three years, where he visited 21 cities...
. He lives and works in Düsseldorf.
Work
In the early 1980s Schütte began a series of small sculptural works depicting men stuck in mud. Today, Schütte's multidisciplinary work ranges widely, from early architectural installations to small-scale modeled figures and proposals for monuments, from extensive series of watercolors, to banners, flags, and photographs. From life-sized figures fabricated in ceramic as in Die Fremden (The Strangers) (1992) to miniaturised monuments cast in bronze as in Grosser Respekt (1993-94), Schütte has exploited transitions in scale and materials to great effect throughout his career. United Enemies, made between 1993 and 1997, is a series which comprises over 30 works with figures made out of Fimo modelling clay and ‘dressed’ in various fabrics and displayed under glass domes. Mostly, the works in this series consist of a pair of figures bound together; there are also a small number of three-figure works and a few single figures.Exhibitions
From September 24, 1998 to June 18, 2000 the Dia Center for the ArtsDia Art Foundation
Dia Art Foundation is a non-profit organization that initiates, supports, presents, and preserves art projects. It was established in 1974 as the Lone Star Foundation by Philippa de Menil, the daughter of Houston arts patron Dominique de Menil and an heiress to the Schlumberger oil exploration...
mounted a three-part survey of Schütte's work. The first, "Scenewright" (September 24, 1998 - January 24, 1999) focused on theater-related projects. "Gloria in Memoria" (February 4 - June 13, 1999) dealt with death with a somewhat morbid sense of humor, as in his memorial to Alain Colas, which pictures the famous sailor and daredevil bobbing in the water, surprised at his own death. The third installment, "In Media Res", included large ceramic heads and massive, battered bronze nudes. In 2007 he made Model for a Hotel for the fourth plinth of Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
.
Schütte had one-man shows at venues including the Kunstmuseum Winterthur
Kunstmuseum Winterthur
Kunstmuseum Winterthur is an art museum in Winterthur, Switzerland run up today by the local Kunstverein, founded in CHK...
, Winterthur, Switzerland (2003) (later travelled to the Musée de Grenoble and K21, Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen
Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen
The Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen is the art collection of the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia, located in Düsseldorf. United by this institution are three different exhibition venues: the K20 at Grabbeplatz, the K21 in the Ständehaus and the Schmela Haus...
, Düsseldorf); Folkwang Museum, Essen (2002); Sammlung Goetz, Munich (2001); a survey in three parts at Dia Center for the Arts, New York (1998-2000); Serralves Foundation
Serralves Foundation
Serralves Foundation is an art foundation whose mission is to raise the general public's awareness concerning contemporary art and the environment. The foundation is located in Porto, Portugal.-Casa de Serralves:...
, Portugal (1998); De Pont Foundation, Tilburg, (1998); Kunsthalle, Hamburg (1994); ARC Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1990); as well as the Stedelijk van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, (1990).
Schütte participated in documenta
Documenta
documenta is an exhibition of modern and contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau which took place in Kassel at that time...
in Kassel three times; in 2005, he was awarded the Golden Lion for Best Artist at the Venice Biennial.
Collections
Schütte's work is held in the collections of the TateTate
-Places:*Tate, Georgia, a town in the United States*Tate County, Mississippi, a county in the United States*Táté, the Hungarian name for Totoi village, Sântimbru Commune, Alba County, Romania*Tate, Filipino word for States...
, MoMA
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
and the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
.