Monica Bonvicini

Monica Bonvicini emerged as a visual artist and began exhibiting internationally in the mid-1990s. Her multifaceted practice investigates the relationships between architecture, power structures, gender, and space. Her research takes the form of works that question the meaning of artistic production, the ambiguity of language, and the limits and possibilities associated with the ideal of freedom. Characterized by dry humor and a direct approach, and imbued with historical, political, and social references, Bonvicini’s work establishes a critical relationship with the sites in which it is exhibited, the materials from which it is made, and the respective roles of viewer and creator. Since her first solo exhibition at the California Institute of the Arts in 1991, her practice has continued to evolve formally while retaining its analytical force, challenging viewers’ perspectives and delivering incisive critiques of patriarchal and sociocultural conventions. Bonvicini has received numerous awards, including the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale in 1999; the Preis der Nationalgalerie für junge Kunst from the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin in 2005; the Rolandpreis für Kunst im öffentlichen Raum in Bremen in 2013; the Hans Platschek Prize for Art and Writing in 2019; and the Oskar Kokoschka Prize in 2020. Her work has been featured in numerous prominent biennials, including those of Busan (2020), Berlin (1998, 2004, and 2014), Shanghai (2002), Santa Fe (1999), Istanbul (2003 and 2017), Gwangju (2006), New Orleans (2008), and Venice (1999, 2001, 2005, 2011, and 2015). Her multimedia exhibitions—encompassing installation, drawing, sculpture, and video—have been presented at major institutions around the world, including MoMA PS1, New York (2009); Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2002); Modern Art Oxford (2003); the Vienna Secession (2003); Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin (2005); Museum Abteiberg, Mönchengladbach (2005 and 2012); SculptureCenter, New York (2007); the National Gallery of Iceland, Reykjavík (2008); the Art Institute of Chicago (2009); Kunstmuseum Basel (2009); FRAC des Pays de la Loire, Carquefou (2009); Fridericianum, Kassel (2011); Deichtorhallen Hamburg (2012); BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead (2016); Berlinische Galerie, Berlin (2017); MAXXI, Rome (2018); Belvedere 21, Vienna (2019); the National Gallery of Denmark, Copenhagen (2019); Kunsthalle Bielefeld (2020); Castello di Rivoli, Turin (2005 and 2021); Kunsthaus Graz (2022); Art Sonje Center, Seoul (2022); Bauhaus Dessau (2022); Kunst Museum Winterthur (2022); and the Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin (2022). Bonvicini’s permanent public installations include works at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London; on the Bjørvika waterfront, in front of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet in Oslo; and at the Weserburg Museum of Modern Art in Bremen. In 2012, she was appointed Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. Bonvicini studied art at the Universität der Künste Berlin and the California Institute of the Arts in Los Angeles. From 2003 to 2017, she was Professor of Performative Art and Sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. In October 2017, she became Professor of Sculpture at the Universität der Künste Berlin. She lives and works in Berlin. Bonvicini is represented by Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York and Los Angeles; Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne; Capitain Petzel, Berlin; Galleria Raffaella Cortese, Milan; Galerie Peter Kilchmann, Zurich; and Galerie Krinzinger, Vienna.