Celandic artist
Olafur Eliasson
has established
an international
reputation based
upon two separate
but related bodies
of work (which are
never presented simultaneously in the same
venue). Eliasson is engaged in a systematic
study of human perception of natural
phenomenon. As a photographer, he has
documented a range of natural environments,
including icebergs, caves, and islands.
As an installation artist, Eliasson produces
temporary, site-specific works composed
almost exclusively of simple, elemental
materialswater (liquid and frozen), light, wind,
fire, heat, trees, and moss. In all media, his
efforts have been distinguished by a poetic
economy of means and a simple, elegant
beauty. Created with a self-conscious
combination of natural materials and man-made
technology, Eliasson's art exists in a border
space between magic and artifice. For
Eliasson's proposed FOCUS exhibition, the
artist has been invited to create a new
installation in the Art Institute's contemporary art
galleries.
Curator: James Rondeau, associate curator of
Contemporary Art, Department of 20th-Century
Painting and Sculpture, The Art Institute of
Chicago.
Related Links:
Olafur Eliasson's Exhibition at MoMA New York, 1998-99
http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/newphoto14/olafur_eliasson.html
Art Insitiute of Chicago
Chicago, IL
USA United States of America