Posts Tagged 'Luc Tuymans'

Honoring Luc Tuymans and TWO x TWO

This year marks the 15th anniversary of TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art, the annual contemporary art auction held at The Rachofsky House benefitting the Dallas Museum of Art and amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research. As a part of TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art 2013, the renowned Belgian artist, Luc Tuymans, will receive the amfAR Award of Excellence for Artistic Contributions to the Fight Against AIDS this weekend, in recognition of his generosity and support of amfAR’s programs. In 2009, the Dallas Museum of Art presented Tuymans’ first retrospective of paintings in the United States, and he has since become one of the most significant artists of his generation with work represented in the world’s most important public and private collections.

Tuymans’ work draws on the historical traditions of Northern European art, as well as photography, television, and cinema, to capture the human condition of the late 20th and 21st centuries. Tuymans is best-known for examining the memory traces of trauma, specifically focusing on politically-charged topics like, the Holocaust, the American response to 9/11, and Belgium’s controversial role in post-colonial Congo.

Luc Tuymans, The Man From Wiels II, 2008, oil on canvas, The Rachofsky Collection and the Dallas Museum of Art through the DMA/amfAR Benefit Auction Fund

Luc Tuymans, The Man From Wiels II, 2008, oil on canvas, The Rachofsky Collection and the Dallas Museum of Art through the DMA/amfAR Benefit Auction Fund

In The Man From Wiels II, Tuymans explores issues of history and memory, as well as the relationship between photography and painting. This painting was purchased in 2009 with funds from the DMA/amfAR Benefit Auction and is currently on view, along with Tuymans’ Mirror, at the DMA.

Meg Smith is the contemporary art curatorial administrative assistant at the DMA

Summer Exhibition: Luc Tuymans

The first U.S. retrospective of Luc Tuymans’ paintings is currently on display at the Dallas Museum of Art.  Approximately 80 paintings by the Belgian artist are on view in our Barrel Vault and Quadrant Galleries through September 5th.

Part of what I love about these paintings is Tuymans’ interest in history and culture.  I am also intrigued by the sense of mystery in his canvases.  An image may appear ordinary, but through reading the label you learn that it is actually beyond ordinary, sometimes bordering on the grotesque.  For example, the painting The Heritage VI looks like a portrait of a smiling average Joe, but he is actually far from average.  His name is Joseph Milteer, and he was a right-wing extremist and Klansman who played a role in conspiracy theories about the Kennedy assassination.      

Luc Tuymans, The Heritage VI, 1996

Tuymans is also very interested in World War II.  One of my favorite paintings is Schwarzheide, which shares its name with a concentration camp.  At his public Artist Talk on June 3rd, Tuymans talked at length about this painting.  He said that artists in concentration camps and work camps would often tear their paintings and drawings into strips so they could distribute them.  Although many people read the vertical lines on this canvas as the bars on a window, they are actually meant to remind us of how artists continued to produce images during the most difficult circumstances.   

Luc Tuymans, Schwarzheide, 1986

 There are several opportunities for teachers to learn more about Luc Tuymans throughout the summer:   

  • The annual Museum Forum for Teachers: Modern and Contemporary Art will be held from July 19-23.  Teachers will spend Wednesday, July 21st, immersed in the Tuymans exhibition, as well as viewing other contemporary works of art in the DMA’s collection.  The application deadline for Museum Forum has just been extended to July 1st
  • Gallery Talks relating to the exhibition have also been planned, including a series called Perspectives.  Jim Falk, President and CEO of the World Affairs Council, will moderate discussions with artists, historians, and scholars to investigate the artistic and cultural issues that inform Luc Tuymans’ work.  Visit our Web site for more information.
  • Experience the smARTphone tour for the Tuymans exhibition.  Bring your smart phone to the Museum to access new and interactive content.  A limited number of iPod Touches are also available for check out from the Visitor Services Desk.  You can also access the smARTphone tour online.

I hope you enjoy this exhibition as much as I do!

Shannon Karol
Coordinator of Museum Visits     

Images:
Luc Tuymans, The Heritage VI, 1996; oi on canvas; Courtesy David Zwirner, New York; © Luc Tuymans; photo: courtesy David Zwirner, New York
Luc Tuymans, Schwarzheide, 1986; oil on canvas; Private collection; © Luc Tuymans; photo: courtesy David Zwirner, New York

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