ARTIST ROOMS: Bruce Nauman - Tate Modern
From Mon 24 Jul 2017 - Sun 1 Jul 2018
Bruce Nauman is interested ‘in what art can be, not just what painting can be.' Discover his works on show at Tate Modern, including sculpture, installation, video, neon and printmaking.
In the mid-1960s, having first studied mathematics and physics, and then art, Bruce Nauman became involved with the art scene in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Throughout his career, Nauman has investigated who we are, physically and mentally, using the human body and the space it inhabits. His own body became an important tool and reference point, whether performing in videos, or being cast to form part of a sculpture. Using self-imposed limitations and systems, he exposes the body’s vulnerability, as well as the human potential for violence and our need to communicate.
Image: Bruce Nauman, Raw Material Washing Hands (detail), 1996. ARTIST ROOMS National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. Acquired jointly through The d'Offay Donation with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and Art Fund 2008 © Bruce Nauman / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York and DACS, London 2017
Words are both the subject and the form of many of Nauman’s works. Through thought-provoking wordplay, his neon pieces and works on paper cast new light on everyday phrases. Sound and the human voice are also significant aspects of his artistic approach, be it using his own voice or employing actors to perform unsettling and humorous scenarios. Disrupting the traditionally quiet space of the gallery, Nauman wants the experience of his work to be: ‘like getting hit in the face with a baseball bat. Or better, like getting hit in the back of the neck. You never see it coming; it just knocks you down.’
For more information about the display, visit the Tate Modern website.
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