04 Oct Jeffrey Gibson, U.S. Pavilion Artist, Joins Hauser & Wirth

Source Credit:  Content and images from Ocula Magazine.  Read the original article - https://ocula.com/magazine/art-news/jeffrey-gibson-joins-hauser-and-wirth/

The gallery will bring the artist’s work to Art Basel Paris and host his first exhibition in the French capital in October 2025.

American artist Jeffrey Gibson, who became the first Indigenous artist to represent the United States in a solo presentation at the Venice Biennale this year, has joined mega-gallery Hauser & Wirth.

Next October, he will open his first exhibition with the gallery at Hauser & Wirth in Paris, who will co-represent the artist alongside his current gallery, Sikkema Jenkins & Co in New York.

‘We are thrilled to welcome Jeffrey Gibson to Hauser & Wirth and honoured to be entrusted by the artist to advocate for a vision and oeuvre we admire so deeply,’ said Marc Payot, President at Hauser & Wirth.

‘He uses his art to generate an ongoing critique of American culture that is simultaneously fierce and loving, forceful and radiant—and ultimately incredibly generous in the way it includes us all,’ Payot said.

The Colorado-born Cherokee artist is known for exuberant works that celebrate cultural diversity and intersectional identities. They draw from myriad sources ranging from Indigenous history to pop culture, queer histories, and art history.

His U.S. Pavilion presentation, the space in which to place me—spanning painting, sculpture, murals, video, and flags—remixes elements from the artist’s heritage with intricate beadwork, vintage pins, and found accessories, presenting a joyful reimagining of Indigenous aesthetics.

WE HOLD THESE TRUTHS TO BE SELF-EVIDENT (2024), for instance, is a punching bag bedazzled with coloured beads spelling out its title, with nylon threads forming a layered skirt at the bottom. Tied to the ceiling, the work appears to challenge limited portrayals of Indigenous cultures while suggesting alternative, non-violent pathways toward healing.

Left to right: Jeffrey Gibson, IF NOT NOW THEN WHEN (2024); The Enforcer (2024); WE WANT TO BE FREE (2024); Mural: WE ARE MADE BY HISTORY (2024). Exhibition view: the space in which to place me, United States Pavilion at the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia (20 April–24 November 2024). © Jeffrey Gibson. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth. Photo: Timothy Schenck.

The son of a U.S. Department of Defense engineer, Gibson grew up living in cities throughout the U.S. and in Germany, South Korea, and the U.K. He trained as a painter at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago followed by the Royal College of Art in London, later incorporating beadwork, leatherwork, and quilting into his practice.

Notions of cultural translation and difference are central to his work today. The latter is often characterised by bold colour, abstract geometric patterns, and strong statements, which coalesce to ‘[embrace] a broad spectrum of cultural expressions and identities’.

‘His ideas and practice align with those of many artists in our programme, from Mike Kelley to Frank Bowling, from Isa Genzken to Sophie Taeuber-Arp, as well as other greats like Bridget Riley and Katerina Grosse, whose art he cites as touchstones,’ Payot said.

In the near future, Hauser & Wirth will bring a new work by Gibson to Art Basel Paris (18–20 October 2024).

The artist’s upcoming projects include a solo exhibition at MASS MoCA in Massachusetts opening on 3 November. His commission at Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will be on view in September 2025. —[O]

Source Credit:  Content and images from Ocula Magazine.  Read the original article - https://ocula.com/magazine/art-news/jeffrey-gibson-joins-hauser-and-wirth/