Biography
David Hammons is a transformer of materials, whose work focuses on the physical and symbolic qualities of his surroundings in order to allow new meanings and metaphors to coalesce. Born in the American Midwest and working in Los Angeles and New York, Hammons interrogates the political and social landscape of the United States through its material remnants. His incisive and moving work in sculpture, painting and film does not deliberately introduce symbols, but rather invites different metaphors to arise through alternative processes, often ephemeral and abstract.
Hammons’ work has been presented at solo exhibitions in several institutions, including Mnuchin Gallery, New York (2016); White Cube, London (2014); L&M Arts, New York (2011); Palazzo Grassi, Venice (2007); Saint Louis Art Museum, Missouri (2006); Hauser & Wirth, Zurich (2003); Gallery Shimada, Yamaguchi, Japan (2001); and The Center for Contemporary Art, Warsaw (2000).
He has also participated in numerous group shows, including Artist’s Choice: Yto Barrada—A Raft, The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York (2021–2022); Off the Wall, Mnuchin Gallery, New York (2021); Being Modern: MoMA in Paris, Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris (2018); Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power, Tate Modern, London (2017); Take an Object, MoMA (2015); Personal, political, mysterious, The FLAG Art Foundation, New York (2013); Whitney Biennial (2006); Dakar Biennale (2004); 50th Venice Biennale (2003); and documenta 9 (1992)
His works can be found in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; SMAK, Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Ghent, Belgium; Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris; Francois Pinault Foundation, Venice; Tate Britain, London; and Sharjah Art Foundation, among others.
Hammons was the recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts (1984) and MacArthur Fellowship (1991).
He studied at Chouinard Art Institute, Los Angeles (1966–1968) and graduated from Otis Art Institute at Parson's School of Design, Los Angeles (1972).
Born in 1943 in Springfield, Illinois, Hammons lives and works in New York.
SAF participation:
Sharjah Biennial 15 (2023)
