Juan Muñoz
(1953-2001)
Juan Muñoz was born in Madrid in 1953. He studied at the Central School of Art and Design, London, the Croydon School of Art, and the Pratt Graphic Centre, New York. While in New York, he was also an artist-in-residence at P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center. Using the figure as his primary subject, Muñoz's creates cast-sculptures in paper-maché, bronze and resin as well as delicate drawings. A self-acclaimed "story-teller," the artist reinvigorated figurative sculpture by creating the illusion of sound and narrative with his smaller-than-life-size figures in an atmosphere of mutual interaction. In his later work, Muñoz added architectural elements to his sculptures, transforming whole floors into labyrinthine environments like in Double Bind at the Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall. He was also interested in creative auditory works, collaborating with Gavin Bryars in A Man in a Room, Gambling, and with Alberto Iglesias in Building for Music.
Muñoz’s work has been exhibited extensively throughout the United States and Europe. Recent solo exhibitions of his work include those at the Museo Nacional de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, in 2009; Guggenheim Bilbao in 2008; Tate Modern, London, in 2008; the Hirshhorn Museum, Washington D.C., in 2001; the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern in 2001; and the Dia Center for the Arts, New York, in 1999. He participated in the Venice Biennale in 1986, 1993, and 1997 and in Documenta IX in 1992 and Documenta XI in 2002. In 2000, he was presented with the Premio Nacional de Artes Plásticas, Spain's most prestigious art award.
