biography
Born in Venice in 1965, Monica Bonvicini lives and works in Berlin.
Monica Bonvicini emerged as visual artist and started exhibiting internationally in the mid-1990s. Her multifaceted practice—which investigates the relationship between architecture, power and gender—is translated into works that question the meaning of making art, the ambiguity of language, the limits and possibilities attached to the ideal of freedom. Dry-humored, direct, and imbued with historical, political and social references, Bonvicini’s art never refrains from establishing a critical connection with the sites where it is exhibited, the materials that comprise it, and the roles of spectator and creator. This approach, which has been at the core of her production since her first solo exhibition at the California Institute of the Arts in 1991, has formally evolved over the years without betraying its analytical force and inclination to challenge the viewer’s perspective while taking hefty sideswipes at socio-cultural conventions.
Born in Venice in 1965, Monica Bonvicini lives and works in Berlin.
Monica Bonvicini emerged as visual artist and started exhibiting internationally in the mid-1990s. Her multifaceted practice—which investigates the relationship between architecture, power and gender—is translated into works that question the meaning of making art, the ambiguity of language, the limits and possibilities attached to the ideal of freedom. Dry-humored, direct, and imbued with historical, political and social references, Bonvicini’s art never refrains from establishing a critical connection with the sites where it is exhibited, the materials that comprise it, and the roles of spectator and creator. This approach, which has been at the core of her production since her first solo exhibition at the California Institute of the Arts in 1991, has formally evolved over the years without betraying its analytical force and inclination to challenge the viewer’s perspective while taking hefty sideswipes at socio-cultural conventions.
Bonvicini studied art in Berlin and at Cal Arts, Valencia, CA, USA. From 2003 to 2017 she was teaching Performative Arts and Sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. In October 2017 she assumes the professorship for sculpture at the Universität der Künste, Berlin. The artist has earned several awards, including the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennial (1999); the Preis der Nationalgalerie für junge Kunst, from the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (2005); the Rolandpreis für public Art Bremen, Germany (2013), the Hans Platschek Prize for Art and Writing, Germany (2019); the 2019 Premio ACACIA alla Carriera, Milan; and the prestigious Oskar Kokoschka Prize, Vienna (2020). Her work has been featured in many prominent biennials, including Berlin (1998, 2004, 2014), La TriennaIe Paris (2012), Istanbul (2003, 2017), Gwangju (2006), New Orleans (2008), Venice (1999, 2001, 2005, 2011, 2015) and Busan (2020). She has had solo exhibitions at Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2002); Modern Art Oxford, Oxford, UK (2003); Secession, Vienna (2003); Staedtisches Museum Abteiberg, Mönchengladbach, Germany (2005, 2012); SculptureCenter, New York, NY, USA (2007); Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA (2009); Kunstmuseum Basel, Switzerland (2009); Frac des Pays de la Loire, France (2009); Kunsthalle Fridericianum, Kassel, Germany (2011); Centro de Arte Contemporaneo de Malága, Malága (2011); Deichtorhallen Hamburg, Germany (2012); Kunsthalle Mainz, Germany (2013); BALTIC Center for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, UK (2016); Berlinische Galerie, Berlin (2017); Belvedere 21, Vienna (2019): OGR Officine Grandi Riparazioni, Turin, Italy (2019); Kunsthalle Bielefeld, Bielefeld (2021). Recent group exhibitions include Women House, La Monnaie de Paris, traveled to the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC, USA (2018); The Street. Where the World Is Made, MAXXI Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo, Rome (2018); States of Mind: Art and American Democracy, Moody Art Center for the Arts, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA (2020), There I Belong. Hammershøi by Elmgreen & Dragset, National Gallery of Denmark, Copenhagen (2020); Punto di equilibrio, MAXXI L’Aquila, Italy (2021); Minimalism-Maximalism-Mechanissmmm Act 1–Act 2, Art Sonje Center, Seoul (2022). Il giardino dell’arte, Centro Pecci, Prato (2022).
Her solo exhibition I do You is currently on view at the Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin, through April 30th, 2023.
gallery exhibitions
images
Doors
Open Room, 2022
2 components lacquer, mirror, aluminum
150 × 100 × 1,7 cm
Others, 2022
2 components lacquer, mirror, aluminum
150 × 100 × 1,7 cm
Pieces, 2022
2 components lacquer, mirror, aluminum
150 × 100 × 1,7 cm
Pleasant
Grande, 2022
Paint on mirror
150 × 100 × 3,6 cm
Why Pleasant, 2022
Paint on mirror
150 × 100 × 3,6 cm
Plush, 2022
Paint on mirror
150 × 100 × 3,6 cm
Hurricanes and Other Catastrophes
Alabama 2011, 2016
Diptych
Tempera and spray paint on Fabriano paper mounted on canvas
198 × 307 cm overall; 2 pieces 198 x 153 cm
Point Your Fingers, 2019
Tempera and spray on Fabriano paper
150 × 100 cm
The Vocation, 2020
Tempera and spray paint on Fabriano paper, mounted on aluminum
150 × 100 cm; 155,7 × 105,7 × 5 cm framed
Your Gift, 2020
Tempera and spray paint on Fabriano paper
150 × 100 cm
Won't Shut Up, 2020
Spray paint on Fabriano paper
100 × 75 cm
With One Leg, 2017
print on Tyvek and spray paint
183 × 136 × 3 cm
Of The Wall, 2017
print on Tyvek and spray paint
183 × 136 × 3 cm
Hang Your Dry, 2018
LED tubes, wire, rubber caps, electric cable, silver tape, chrome bar, troughed sheets
230 × 232 × 35 cm
Photo: Nicola Morittu
Fleurs du Mal (droop pink), 2022
Bronze, hand blown glass
60,5 × 60 × 60 cm
Come on Home/blue, 2021
Murano glass, mirror, ash wood
55 × 50 × 12,6 cm
Photo: Ed. 3 + 2 AP
Same Old Shit, 2018
mirror, MDF
90 × 80 × 2,6 cm
Breathing, 2017
Installation view at Art Basel | Unlimited 2019
Steel structure, compressed air cylinder, compressor, rope, synthetic fiber, leather belts
Dimensions variable
Photo: Andrea Rossetti
Breathing, 2017 (detail)
Installation view at Art Basel | Unlimited 2019
Steel structure, compressed air cylinder, compressor, rope, synthetic fiber, leather belts
Dimensions variable
Photo: Andrea Rossetti
Breathing, 2017 (detail)
Steel structure, compressed air cylinder, compressor, rope, synthetic fiber, leather belts
Dimensions variable
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Diener/Danish, 2017
brass, iron, wood
190 × 20 × 57 cm
Diener/Elegant Leather, 2017
brass, iron, leather
190 × 20 × 57 cm
Leather Tools
Leather Tool ('triangle end' hammer), 2009
Leather, leather string, hammer
3 × 28,3 × 16,5 cm
Photo: Thomas Bruns
Leather Tool (untitled), 2003
Leather, leather string, hammer
2,2 × 32,3 × 13,3 cm
Photo: Thomas Bruns
Blind Corner, 2004
ink and tempera marker on paper
71,5 × 90 cm; 76 x 95 x 4,5 cm framed
Blind Date, 2004
ink and tempera marker on paper
71,5 × 90 cm; 76 x 95 x 4,5 cm framed
Places of ID (Three People at the...), 2002
Tempera marker on Fabriano paper
150 × 130 cm; 160 × 141 × 5,5 cm framed
Photo: Lorenzo Palmieri
Women Carrousel, 2002
Tempera marker on Fabriano paper
150 × 130 cm; 160 × 141 × 5,5 cm framed
Photo: Lorenzo Palmieri
Italian Homes
Italian Homes #4, 2019
Pigment print on paper
59 × 79,5 cm; 60,5 × 81 × 3,5 cm framed; 39 x 59,5 cm image size
Italian Homes #7, 2019
Pigment print on paper
59 × 79,5 cm; 60,5 × 81 × 3,5 cm framed; 39 x 59,5 cm image size
Italian Homes #11, 2019
Pigment print on paper
59 × 79,5 cm; 60,5 × 81 × 3,5 cm framed; 39 x 59,5 cm image size
Italian Homes #28, 2019
Pigment print on paper
59 × 79,5 cm; 60,5 × 81 × 3,5 cm framed; 39 x 59,5 cm image size
Italian Homes #30, 2019
Pigment print on paper
59 × 79,5 cm; 60,5 × 81 × 3,5 cm framed; 39 x 59,5 cm image size
Italian Homes #39, 2019
Pigment print on paper
59 × 79,5 cm; 60,5 × 81 × 3,5 cm framed; 39 x 59,5 cm image size
Power Joy Humor Resistance, 2020
Installation view at Italian Cultural Institute Stockholm
Red neon tube letters, aluminum frames, electric cables
330 x 300 cm
Photo: David Puig Serinyà
© Monica Bonvicini and VG Bild-Kunst / Bildupphovsrätt i Sverige, courtesy the artist and Italian Cultural Institute Stockholm
15 Steps to the Virgin / Block 4, 2011
Installation view at Museo del Novecento, Milan, 2019
Wood, silver PVC
167 × 222 × 131 cm
Photo: F. Manusardi
Premio ACACIA alla Carriera / Collezione Museo del Novecento
public exhibitions
Kunstmuseum Winterthur
Winterthur, Switzerland
Hurricanes and Other Catastrophes
7.9 – 13.11.2022
Centro Pecci
Prato, Italy
Il giardino dell’arte. Opere, collezioni
27.3 – 24.7.2022
Photo: Ela Bialkowska OKNOstudio
Virserums konsthall
Virserum, Sweden
Hem hemska hem
18.4 – 5.12.2021
Courtesy: Virserums konsthall
Virserums konsthall
Virserum, Sweden
Hem hemska hem
18.4 – 5.12.2021
Courtesy: Virserums konsthall
ATO Art Takes Over
Via della Spiga, Milano
Trasformazione
20.4 – 30.6.2021
Photo: Andrea Rossetti
Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea
Rome
Io dico Io – I say I
1.3 – 23.5.2021
Photo: Monkeys VideoLab
Kunsthalle Bielefeld
Bielefeld, Germany
LOVER'S MATERIAL
10.10.2020 – 21.2.2021
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Kunsthalle Bielefeld
Bielefeld, Germany
LOVER'S MATERIAL
10.10.2020 – 21.2.2021
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Kunstmuseum Stuttgart
Stuttgart, Germany
Wände Walls
26.9.2020 – 31.1.2021
Photo: Frank Kleinbach © Kunstmuseum Stuttgart
Kunstmuseum Stuttgart
Stuttgart, Germany
Wände Walls
26.9.2020 – 31.1.2021
Photo: Frank Kleinbach © Kunstmuseum Stuttgart
OGR
Torino
As Walls Keep Shifting
31.10.2019 – 9.2.2020
Photo Luigi DePalma Courtesy OGR Torino
OGR
Torino
As Walls Keep Shifting
31.10.2019 – 9.2.2020
Photo Andrea Rossetti Courtesy OGR Torino
OGR
Torino
As Walls Keep Shifting
31.10.2019 – 9.2.2020
Photo Andrea Rossetti Courtesy OGR Torino
OGR
Torino
As Walls Keep Shifting
31.10.2019 – 9.2.2020
Photo Andrea Rossetti Courtesy OGR Torino
Kunstverein Hamburg
Hamburg
2019-05-17
Political Affairs - Language Is Not Innocent
21.7.2019
Photo: Fred Dott
Kunsthal Charlottenborg
Charlottenborg
Europa Endlos
21.3 – 11.8.2019
Photo: Norbert Miguletz
KAI 10 | ARTHENA FOUNDATION
Düsseldorf
Body in Pieces
22.2 – 12.5.2019
Photo: Hans-Georg Gaul
KAI 10 | ARTHENA FOUNDATION
Düsseldorf
Body in Pieces
22.2 – 12.5.2019
Photo: Hans-Georg Gaul
KAI 10 | ARTHENA FOUNDATION
Düsseldorf
Body in Pieces
22.2 – 12.5.2019
Photo: Hans-Georg Gaul
Kunstverein Hamburg
Hamburg
Class Relations: Phantoms of Perception
27.10.2018 – 27.1.2019
Photo: Fred Dott
Berlinische Galerie
Berlin
3612,54 M³ VS 0,05 M³
16.9.2017 – 26.2.2018
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlinische Galerie
Berlin
3612,54 M³ VS 0,05 M³
16.9.2017 – 26.2.2018
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlinische Galerie
Berlin
3612,54 M³ VS 0,05 M³
16.9.2017 – 26.2.2018
Photo: Jens Ziehe
15th Istanbul Biennial
Hamam
Istanbul
a good neighbour
16.9 – 12.11.2017
Photo: Sahir Ugur Eren
15th Istanbul Biennial
Hamam
Istanbul
a good neighbour
16.9 – 12.11.2017
Photo: Sahir Ugur Eren
15th Istanbul Biennial
Hamam
Istanbul
a good neighbour
16.9 – 12.11.2017
Photo: Sahir Ugur Eren
BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art
Gateshead
her hand around the room
18.11.2016 – 26.2.2017
BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art
Gateshead
her hand around the room
18.11.2016 – 26.2.2017
Photo: John McKenzie
press
Monica Bonvicini on Her New Massive Sculpture on View in Berlin, a 33-Foot-Long Whip
Artnet News
December 5, 2017
Six things you need to know about Monica Bonvicini
Fetishism, Freud and transparent toilets - a brief guide to this great Italian artist’s work
Phaidon
June 2017
publications
Hot Like Hell
Snoeck Verlagsgesellschaft mbH
Cologne
2021
Monica Bonvicini: I CANNOT HIDE MY ANGER
Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König
Berlin
2019
Monica Bonvicini
Kerber
Bielefeld
2017
Monica Bonvicini
Phaidon
London
2014
Monica Bonvicini - Disegni
Distanz
Berlin
2012
A Black Hole of Needs, Hopes and Ambitions
Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König
Berlin
2011
video
Monica Bonvicini – I Don't Like You Very Much | Kunsthaus Graz
2022
Exhibition teaser featuring Monica Bonvicini. Video © Kunsthaus Graz.
Monica Bonvicini – Breathing, 2017
2019
Installation video at Art Basel | Unlimited 2019. Video: Andrea Rossetti.
