Mike Nelson (1967 – )
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TOWARDS A LEXICON OF PHENOMENA AND INFORMATION ASSOCIATION. AN INTRODUCTORY HOME APPARATUS (PLASTIC ONO BAND) 2000 Mike Nelson (1967 – ) P7334 © The Artist
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HEROIN ROOM (THE CORAL REEF, 2000) 2007 Mike Nelson (1967 – ) P8106 © The Artist
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THE BLACK ART BARBECUE, SAN ANTONIO, AUGUST 1961 1998 Mike Nelson (1967 – ) P7529 © copyright The Artist
Mike Nelson was born in Loughborough, England in 1967. He studied at Reading University and Chelsea College of Art and Design, London. In 2001 he was the recipient of an award from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation and he has twice been shortlisted for the Turner Prize (2001, 2007). Nelson represented Britain at the Venice Biennale in 2011.
Nelson makes large-scale sculptural installations, which immerse the viewer in an unfolding narrative that develops through a sequence of meticulously realised spatial structures. The weaving of fact and fiction has always been fundamental to Nelson’s practice and his constructs are steeped in both literary and cinematic references whilst drawing upon the geography, history and cultural context of their location.
The Black Art Barbecue, San Antonio, August 1961 (1998) is a recreation of an artist’s desk in a studio. The title of the work is taken from an amalgamation of the various drawings that are hung around the desk. The work also visually references an engraving by Albrecht Dürer, St Jerome in his Study (1514), which shows a man reading at a desk, surrounded by an intriguing collection of objects and animals.
Like much of Nelson’s work, the scene appears as if the (unknown) artist has just left the room and may return at any moment. The light under the desk is on and the objects on the desk are laid out as if organised for a particular purpose or function. The unusual collection of items, which includes tools, rocks, twigs, plastic toys and skulls and what look like voodoo dolls, hints at an interest in the occult, which is echoed in the drawings hung on the surrounding walls.
Glossary
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Design
The arrangement of elements or details in an artefact or a work of art.
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Engraving
An intaglio process whereby lines are cut into a metal or wood plate using an engraving tool (a burin), which is pushed in front of the hand to achieve a sharp controlled incision capable of great delicacy. This technique requires a great deal of control and is not suited to spontaneous mark-making.
See in
Portfolio
- Italy, Venice, British Pavilion
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/rock-paper-scissors-2010">ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS- Ukraine, Kyiv, Bottega Gallery
- Azerbaijan, Baku, Azerbaijani Academy Of Fine Arts
- Georgia, Academy Of Arts
- Armenia, Yerevan, Fine Arts Academy
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/passports-in-viaggio-con-larte-2009">PASSPORTS. IN VIAGGIO CON L'ARTE- Italy, Milan, Padglione D'arte Contemporanea
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/martian-museum-of-terrestrial-art-2008">MARTIAN MUSEUM OF TERRESTRIAL ART- UK, London, Barbican Art Gallery
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/26-bienal-de-so-paulo-mike-nelson-modernismo-negro-2004">26ª BIENAL DE SÃO PAULO: MIKE NELSON, MODERNISMO NEGRO- Brazil, Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo Bienal
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/still-life-2002">STILL LIFE- Brazil, Sao Paulo, SESI
- Brazil, Rio De Janeiro, Museum Of Contemporary Art Niteroi
- Guatemala, Ciudad De Guatemala, Museo De Arte Moderna
- Panama, Panama City, Museo De Arte Contemporaneo
- Colombia, Bogota, Biblioteca Luis Angel Arango
- Argentina, Rosario, Centro Cultural Parque Espana
- Argentina, Buenos Aires, Malba
- Venezuela, Caracas, Museo Alejandro Otero
- Chile, Santiago, Museo Nacional De Bellas Artes
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/multiplication-2001">MULTIPLICATION- Chile, Santiago, Instituto De Arte Moderno
- Colombia, Barranquilla, Museo De Arte Moderno
- Colombia, Cali, Museo La Tertulia
- Colombia, Bogota, Galeria Santa Fe De Bogota
- Venezuela, Caracas, Museo De Artes Visuales Alejandro Otero
- Venezuela, Maracaibo, Museo Arte Contemporaneo De Zulia
- Albania, Tirana, Galeria Kombetare E Arteve
- Macedonia, Skopje, Museum Of Modern Art
- Bulgaria, Varna, Varna Art Museum
- Bulgaria, Plovdiv, Plovdiv City Art Gallery
- Bulgaria, Sofia, Sofia City Art Gallery
- Cyprus, Limassol, Evagoras Lanitis Centre
- Cyprus, Nicosia, Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre
- Slovenia, Ljubljana, Mestna Gallery
- Slovenia, Celje, Contemporary Arts Gallery
- Slovenia, Maribor, Kibla Centre
- Estonia, Tallinn, Tallinn Town Hall
- Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Museum of Fine Art, Husove Street Gallery
- Yugoslavia, Podgorica, Podgorica
- Yugoslavia, Belgrade, Masarakova Art Pavilion
- Poland, Wroclaw, Awagarda Gallery
- Croatia, Zagreb, Muzej Suvremene Umjetnosti
- Croatia, Zadar, Galerija Umjetnin Narodnog Muzeja
- Croatia, Split, Galerija Umjetnina
- Croatia, Dubrovnik, Palaca Sponza
- Romania, Sibiu, Museum Brukenthal
- Romania, Brasov, Muzeul De Arta Brasov
- Romania, Bucharest, National Museum Of Art
- UK, London, British Council - Telford Way