Artist
Joel Morrison
About
Born in Seattle, Washington, in 1976 and currently located in Los Angeles, the artist studied English Literature at Central Washington University (BA) and sculpture at the Claremont Graduate University in California (MFA).His work is instantly recognizable as he uses everyday objects such as shoppin
Born in Seattle, Washington, in 1976 and currently located in Los Angeles, the artist studied English Literature at Central Washington University (BA) and sculpture at the Claremont Graduate University in California (MFA).His work is instantly recognizable as he uses everyday objects such as shopping carts, bullets, pieces of food, neck braces etc., masterfully blending them with each other or together with neoclassical busts, creating strange, very polished stainless steel casts that, once the work is completed, reflect their surroundings, mirroring the viewer’s angle and emotion. The result is sometimes grotesque, amorphous, but always surprising, as it lifts up these common things to higher levels of metaphor, being the protagonists of the sculptor’s strange and humorous dystopia, lingering between Pop and Classicism, Surrealism and simple, raw depictions.Morrison is represented by the Gagosian Gallery as well as the Almine Rech Gallery. He started exhibiting his work in 2001 and has since participated in many group as well as solo exhibitions around the world. In 2006 he was a featured artist in the California Biennial and took part in the renowned Thing exhibition at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles.Text by Eleni Papaioannou