Brian Jungen hits the beach, Miami beach that is

Prototype for a New Understanding. Photo by Trevor Mills

The first time I met Brian Jungen was in Toronto in an Aboriginal art circle. He was very unassuming and has a quiet presence to him. He had brown curly somewhat unruly hair and a sweater that one might wear to those Christmas sweater parties. I had no clue whom he was when he told me he was from Northern BC and now lives in Vancouver. I thought 'here is a guy from the wilderness of Northern BC now living in an urban setting, that must be so weird.' So I asked him how he found Vancouver. He said "Yeah it's cool, I used to live in New York City for a while, but yeah, Vancouver is cool." I felt like a total dumb-arse.

Since my first encounter I have educated myself and have become familiar with his work. My personal favorites are the Nike shoes made to resemble Haida masks and the giant skeletal whale made from those tacky plastic patio chairs. These are both proof that you can make everyday consumerable items into "high art."

And high art it is. Jungen has been shown Internationally for such prestigous institutions as the Vancouer Art Gallery and London's Tate Modern. This Swiss/Dunne-za First Nations guy graduatated from Emily Carr institute at only 22 years old and has spent the last 17 years honing his craft. This included a 2002 win of the Sobey Art Award.

You can view a few samples of his work until May 24 at Miami Art Museum for the NeeHooDoo: A Forgotten Faith exhibit. A review by Miami Arts is available here. And if you see a guy in the exhibit who says he's from Northern BC know that he is a more of an art star than a forest hippie.

See related posts:
-Jungen receives Smithsonian fellowship
-Tales from the casting couch

Tweet

Pin It