One of the most complex and fascinating artists working today, Bruce Nauman (b. 1941) has assembled a mesmerizing body of work that encompasses video, installation, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, photography, and neon. In 2008 Nauman was unanimously selected to represent the United States at the 53rd Venice Biennale, in an exhibition organized by the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The exhibition, on view in Venice through November 22, 2009, has been awarded the prestigious Golden Lion for the Best National Participation. This is the first time since 1990 that the United States has received the coveted award.
The accompanying catalogue explores the interconnections among several specific themes that have recurred prominently throughout four decades of Nauman’s work. Linking the urban texture of Venice to the topological dimensions of his provocative art, the overarching project allows for an unprecedented occasion for the appreciation and exploration of Nauman’s undeniable creativity and influence. Bruce Nauman: Topological Gardens includes texts by Erica Battle and Carlos Basualdo on the organization of the exhibition and the publication, featuring detailed discussions of the works in the show. Michael R. Taylor examines Nauman’s practice in an art-historical context, and Marco De Michelis explores the notion of space as deployed throughout Nauman’s oeuvre, with particular reference to the works on view.