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Adel Abdessemed

Adel Abdessemedis a conceptual artist who works in a broad range of media including drawing, video, photography, performance, and sculpture. Working with familiar materials and images, Abdessemed manipulates them to create unexpected works with charged socio-political statements. Drawing on personal, political, and historical narratives, Abdessemed reflects upon the increasing globalization of the world, and the way that it impacts an individual's sense of self. Variously creating life-sized sculptures out of razor wire and drawings of animals strapped with dynamite to explore representations of violence and war, to films of animals and insects interacting to reflect upon notions of survival and destruction, Abdessemed looks to a broad range of subjects to comment on our modern day world.


Abdessemed has been the subject of solo exhibitions at major institutions including the Centre Georges Pompidou, the San Francisco Art Institute, MoMA PS1, and the Musée d'art moderne et contemporain in Geneva, as well as in major international exhibitions such as the Paris Triennale, the Istanbul Biennial, the Gwangju Biennial, and the Venice Biennale. 


 

Born 1971
Hometown Constantine, Algeria
Lives and Works Paris, France
Education
MFA, École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux - Arts de Lyon, Lyon, France, 1998
BFA, École des Beaux - Arts d’Alger, Algiers, Algeria, 1994
Permanent Collection

Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France

The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel,

Musée d’art Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva, Switzerland

Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, France

Fondation François Pinault, Venice, Italy

Yuz Foundation, Hong Kong, People's Republic of China

Representing Galleries

David Zwirner, New York, NY

Christine König Galerie, Vienna, Austria

Dvir Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel

Articles

Sarah Sze: Painter, Sculptor or Something Else Again?
Sarah Sze: Painter, Sculptor or Something Else Again?

It’s a question that’s engaged critics and curators consumed by the acclaimed artist’s work. Mark Godfrey, contributor to a new book on Sze, has a really interesting take

Michele Robecchi Picks his Favorite Artspace Works
Michele Robecchi Picks his Favorite Artspace Works

Prints by Pipilotti Rist, Nari Ward, Pope .L and Lorraine O'Grady are among the respected critic's choices

Why Won’t Artists Leave Animals Alone?
Why Won’t Artists Leave Animals Alone?

The past few years have seen a marked uptick in the number of artworks featuring live animals, even as Seaworld and the Ringling Bros. phase out their critter performers—what gives?

9 Oversized Sculptures You Need to Know Now
9 Oversized Sculptures You Need to Know Now

These works, excerpted from Phaidon’s The Art Book, The 21st-Century Art Book and 30,000 Years of Art, show artists blowing up everyday items to monumental proportions.

10 Artists to Watch This November
10 Artists to Watch This November

From an Egyptian wunderkind making his grand debut at MoMA’s “New Photography” survey to a controversial artist opening a big show in L.A., these are the month’s big draws.

Who Are the Art World's Superheroes & Villains?
Who Are the Art World's Superheroes & Villains?

In the spirit of summer blockbusters, we've compiled a list of the most righteous heroes and dastardly villains of the art world.

Alain Servais on Art-Market Insider Trading
Alain Servais on Art-Market Insider Trading

the Brussels-based connoisseur speaks about his dissatisfactions with the current gallery system, and where he thinks contemporary art will be in 2150.

A Brief History of Animals in Art
A Brief History of Animals in Art

We looked back on the strategies of seven artists who have incorporated living creatures, from livestock to house pets, in their provocative art.

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