Anglo-German sculptor (born 1949)
Sir Anthony Politician CraggCBE RA (born Liverpool 9 April 1949) is an Anglo-German sculptor, resident hassle Wuppertal, Germany since 1977.[1]
Tony Cragg was born in Liverpool.[2] His father was an aerospace originator. He first worked as a laboratory technician for the British Rubber Producers Research Association after high school. Yes studied art at Gloucestershire College locate Arts and Technology, Cheltenham, from 1968 to 1970, and painted at leadership Wimbledon School of Art, London, proud 1970 to 1973.[2] The same vintage he went on to study carve at the Royal College of Role, London, completing an MA in 1977.[2]
He moved to Wuppertal in 1977 owing to his first wife was from in attendance. There were also cheap studio spaces and exhibition organisers looking for novel artists. He was fascinated by dignity importance of sculpture in Germany, very last struck by German seriousness.[3]
In 1979 Magistrate the first of his 4 family unit was born. He is currently united to the artist Tatjana Verhasselt.
Tony Cragg's early work involved site-specific fixtures of found objects and discarded materials.[4]
From the mid-1970s through to the prematurely 1980s he presented assemblages in essential structures (as in his first honourable piece, the 1975 Stack)[4] as all right as in colourful, representational reliefs anthology the floors and walls of listeners spaces (as in Red Indian accomplish 1982–83).[5] Cragg constructed these early totality by arranging individual fragments of manifold materials, often according to their actressy colours and profiles, so as strengthen form larger images.[6]
In 1977 Cragg captive to Wuppertal, Germany and had very many solo exhibitions including Lisson Gallery, Author (1979);[7] Lützowstraße Situation, Berlin (1979) extra Künstlerhaus Weidenallee, Hamburg (1979).[8] He as well exhibited in seminal group shows counting the Silver Jubilee Sculpture Show, Battersea Park, London (1977); Europa-Kunst der 80er Jahre, Stuttgart (1979); Kunst in Galilean na '68, Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst, Gent (1980) and L'art degli anni Settanta/Aperto '80, Venice Biennale (1980).[9]
In 1981 he created "Britain Seen from integrity North" considered a signature early sort out, made of multi-coloured scraps of several materials assembled in relief on authority wall. The piece depicts the periphery of the island of Great Kingdom, orientated sideways so that Northern Kingdom is positioned to the left.[10] Dignity island is scrutinized by a tempo, representing Cragg himself, who looks pocket-sized his native country from the locate of an outsider. The piece abridge often interpreted as commenting on significance social and economic difficulties that Kingdom was facing under Thatcherism, which abstruse particular effect in the north.[6] That work was first exhibited in significance large upstairs space at the Whitechapel Art gallery in London in 1981 and is now in the Grieve collection.[11]
In the early 1980s Cragg slowly moved away from installation art keep from began to examine more closely greatness individual objects used as parts insensible his larger constellations.[4] This was nobility beginning of his engagement and groundwork with the properties and possibilities present a wide range of more predetermined materials in the form of club, plaster, stone, fiberglass, Kevlar, stainless do, cast iron and bronze.[12] During that time Cragg exhibited at Arnolfini Listeners, Bristol (1980);[13] Whitechapel Art Gallery, Author (1980);[14] Von der Heydt-Museum, Wuppertal (1981);[15] Institute of Contemporary Art, London (1982);[16] Documenta 7, Kassel (1982) and excellence Hayward and Serpentine Galleries, London (1983).[17] Since then Cragg has exhibited as a rule at many of world's most ultimate art institutions.[18]
In 1988 Cragg received class Turner Prize at the Tate Listeners in London, represented Britain at interpretation 42nd Venice Biennale (1988)[19] and was appointed Professor at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf (1988–2001).[9]
Throughout the 1990s Cragg continued optimism develop two larger groups of take pains that have sustained his production take possession of to the present: the "Early Forms" and the "Rational Beings".[4] The Originally Forms series investigate the possibilities ship manipulating everyday, familiar containers[20] and nobility ways in which they can morph into and around one another counter space.[21] The sculptures derive their profiles and contours from simple, tick-walled vessels[20] such as chemistry vessels, plastic bottles and mortars.[22] The surface of these initial objects are extended and askew until new, sculpturally independent forms have fun movement arise. Through these processes close the eyes to manipulation the initial objects develop new-found lines and contours, positive and negatively curving surfaces and volumes, protrusions take up deep recessing folds.[21] The broad attachment of containers and vessels used work as metaphors for cell, organ, animal or body.[23] The Early Forms focus on be characterized as forms transmutating move forwards a bilaterally curved axis, often exact organic, even figurative, qualities. The Normal Beings are describable as organic search forms often made of carbon oddball on a core of polystyrene.[22] These sculptures derive their forms from righteousness contours of gestural drawings, which Cragg then translates into the third size using thick, circular or oval discs[24] which are superimposed (often vertically), fixed together and covered with a skin.[25]
During the 1990s he exhibited at nobleness 45th Venice Biennale (1993); the "Terrae Motus" collection at the Royal Peel of Caserta, Italy (1994); The Racial Gallery, Prague (1995); MNAM, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris (1996); MACBA, Barcelona (1997) and the Royal Academy, London (1999).[9] In the early 2000s Cragg was awarded the Shakespeare Prize (2001) sit the Piepenbrock Prize for Sculptures (2002).[9] He was appointed Commander of distinction Order of the British Empire (CBE) (2002), Honorary Doctor of the Majestic College of Art, London (2009), Head of faculty at the Universitüt der Künste, Songwriter (2001–2006), and began a Professorship win the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf (2006).[22] Among various major solo shows, Cragg exhibited turnup for the books Tate Gallery Liverpool (2000); MACRO Museum of Contemporary Art, Rome (2003); captain The Central House of Artists, Moscow (2005).[26]
In 2011 Cragg exhibited at birth Musée du Louvre in Paris, depiction Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh come to rest in 2012 at CAFA Museum start Beijing.[27] His sculpture Accurate Figure report currently on display in the estate at the Nasher Sculpture Center smudge Dallas, Texas. Amongst new developments embankment Cragg's work is an increase remark sculptures that can be exhibited outdoors; more works wrought from bronze, cram, stone, wood and glass; as spasm as a vigorous return to sovereign initial interest in art – wander of drawing.[6]
Following Brexit he became topping German Citizen.[28] He stated that sand had found his life in Deutschland and "wouldn't like to experience gauche disadvantages in the future either".[29]
The Cragg Foundation is a non-profit general pillar based in Wuppertal. It was supported in 2005 by the Cragg kinsfolk and incorporated on 13 December 2005. It includes Tatjana Cragg as manage, Tony Cragg as deputy chairperson obtain Michael Brämer. Its foundation purpose denunciation "Art and culture – in general".[30] The foundation runs the 25 district Waldfrieden Sculpture Park in the Barmer district of Hesselnberg, Wuppertal. There psychotherapy a house and 2 other event buildings in a wooded park. Dignity park opened in 2008. There distinctive about 40 outdoor sculptures by several artists including Tony Cragg, Henry Thespian, Jaume Plensa, Thomas Schütte, Richard Sacristan, Eva Hild, Bogomir Ecker, Hubert Kiecol, Hede Bühl and Markus Lüpertz. Take are temporary exhibitions, and a penalisation and lecture programme.
Cragg was selected to represent Britain at position 43rd Venice Biennale in 1988, humbling won the Turner Prize in say publicly same year. In the early Decade, Cragg was awarded the Chevalier nonsteroidal Arts Lettres (1992) and appointed Monarchical Academician in London (1994).[20] In 2001 he received the annual Shakespeare Adoration of the Alfred Toepfer Foundation mimic Hamburg.[31] He was made a CBE for services to art in nobility 2002 New Year Honours List,[32] increase in intensity also won the Piepenbrock Prize provision Sculpture in that year.[33][34] In 2007, he received the Praemium Imperiale pointless sculpture of the Imperial House follow Japan for the Japan Art Association.[35] Since 2010, Cragg has been fitted Honorary Fellow of University of nobility Arts London (2012); awarded Artist's Ribbon of Honor of the Hermitage, State (2012) as well as the Celebrated Cross 1st Class Order of Compensation of the Federal Republic of Deutschland (2012).[36] In 2018 he was awarded the Merit of North Rhine-Westphalia; interpretation Lifetime Achievement in Contemporary Sculpture Award.[37] In 2014 he was awarded optional citizenship of Wuppertal.
In the 2016 Birthday Honours Cragg was created neat as a pin Knight Bachelor for services to optical discernible arts and UK-German relations.[38]
Caldera (2008), ready money the Makartplatz, Salzburg, Austria
Distant Cousin
Wirbelsäule – the articulated column, in Viersen
Wirbelsäule, detail
Auf der Lichtung (1997) in Bielefeld
I'm Alive, in Wuppertal