October 27, 2008
GABRIEL OROZCO’s sculptures and photographs disrupt conventional notions of reality. Drawing our attention to slips in logic, philosophical games, and hidden geometries, Orozco uncovers the extraordinary aspects of the seemingly everyday. His use of humble materials and means (graphite on bone, a ball of clay, a 35mm camera) engages the imagination through its disarming simplicity and intimacy. Orozco has had recent solo exhibitions at the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City, and the Museum Ludwig, Cologne, in conjunction with the prestigious Blue Orange Prize. Important future projects include a solo exhibition planned for MoMA in late 2009, which will travel to Kunstmuseum Basel and the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris.

For more information visit: Art21 Artist page; Art21 Videos

SUSAN SOLLINS, the co-founder and Executive Director of Art21, has been well known in the field of contemporary art for more than 30 years for her innovations in public programming and museum education, and as a curator. Sollins is the co-founder and Executive Director Emerita of Independent Curators International (ICI), a nonprofit organization that develops, organizes, and circulates traveling exhibitions of contemporary art. Sollins was formerly the Visual Arts Consultant for Thirteen/WNET’s Emmy and Peabody Award-winning arts magazine City Arts; serves on the Boards of the MacDowell Colony and ICI; and has been a panelist for the NEA, NYSCA, and New York’s Percent for Art program. November 17, 2008
JESSICA STOCKHOLDER’s genre-bending installations have been described as “paintings in space.” In her multimedia works, Stockholder combines disparate objects (bales of hay, laundry baskets, lamps) with construction elements (bricks, concrete, plywood) and materials traditionally associ-ated with fine art and crafts (paint, yarn, paper mache). Her exuberant works often employ dramatic lighting, Technicolor plastic products, and areas painted in bright hues, calibrated for maximum impact. Stockholder has had solo shows at the Dia Center for the Arts, P.S. 1, The Renaissance Society, and the Power Plant, among other places, and serves as the Director of Graduate Studies in Sculpture at Yale University.

For more information visit: Art21 Artist page; Art21 Videos

For over 20 years GEORGE VELLONAKIS has worked as a landscape architect for the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, and currently oversees the in-house design program for parks. His projects include some of New York City’s most prominent public spaces: City Hall Park, Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, and Flushing Meadows Park. Vellonakis designed the 2004 Best of Parks winner Abingdon Square in the West Village, and is currently overseeing the construction of Washington Square Park. He is a prominent advocate for public parks, and sits on multiple boards such as the Westbeth Artists Community, the 11th Street Association, and the Washington Square Park Association. January 26, 2009
Trained in both music and visual art, LAURIE ANDERSON began her career by performing in the streets of New York City in the early 1970s. Following the success of her hit single O Superman (1980), she has since gone on to release eight albums and produce numerous large-scale theatrical works that combine a variety of media (music, video, storytelling) in which she is an electrifying performer. Her technologically innovative work led her to be selected as the first artist-in-residence at NASA, and she has had solo exhibitions at the Guggenheim Museum, the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, and Fondazione Prada, Milan. Anderson’s latest project, Homeland, is currently touring internationally and was performed at Lincoln Center in July 2008.

For more information visit: Art21 Artist page; Art21 Videos
February 23, 2009
ROBERT RYMAN’s work explodes the classical distinction between sculpture and painting, emphasizing instead the role that perception and context play in creating an aesthetic experience. Since the 1950s, Ryman has used primarily white paint on a square surface - canvas, paper, metal, or wood - relying on light and shadow to animate his work. Neither abstract nor entirely monochromatic, Ryman’s paintings are paradoxically ‘realist’. Ryman was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1994; His work has been the subject of 80+ solo exhibitions in 10 countries including a major retrospective co-organized by the Tate and MoMA (1993), and recent shows at The Menil Collection and the Hallen für Neue Kunst (Schaffhausen, Switzerland).

For more information visit: Art21 Artist page; Art21 Videos

Artist, collector, and founder of the Hallen für Neue Kunst in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, URS RAUSSMÜLLER has collaborated extensively with Robert Ryman over the past 30 years, most recently on a new installation of Ryman’s paintings at the Hallen für Neue Kunst. An extraordinary venue for experiencing art, the Hallen für Neue Kunst was created "to give artworks a spatial environment that—simple and coherent—would support the specific peculiarities of their conception and appearance." Since its founding in 1982, this venue has earned an international reputation for its unique approach. A companion to the new installation, "Urs Raussmüller and Robert Ryman: Advancing the Experience" will be published in 2009.