Brandon Ballengée at HELLO NATURE

germanisches nationalmuseum logo

Brandon Ballengée 

HELLO NATURE

October 3, 2024 – March 2, 2025

The exhibition “Hello Nature – How Best to Live with You?” illustrates the complex relationship between humans and nature. It asks what happens when humans see themselves as the center of all life and try to rule over the natural world. The presentation traces the history of this skewed relationship: a tale of exploitation, threatened existence – even extinction – but also the desire for preservation. At the same time, the exhibition raises the question of future possibilities for a better, more balanced coexistence.

The presentation is divided into three large sections that span the period from early records of human sedentism to the present. It shows how interactions between people and their environment have, over time, led to profound changes. The first section highlights the long history of the human appropriation and exploitation of other beings as ‘natural resources.’ The second chapter addresses nature’s capacity to adapt and bounce back and demonstrates how it is impossible for humans to ever fully master nature. The third chapter is dedicated to new approaches and narratives that seek to overcome the opposition between nature and civilization. The show concludes by exploring potential avenues for overcoming the current ecological crisis. It also investigates to what extent learning about the past can help us face the significant challenges of our present age.

Related

germanisches nationalmuseum logo

Brandon Ballengée at HELLO NATURE

October 3, 2024 - March 2, 2025
hammer museum

Brandon Ballengée participates in Breath(e) at Hammer Museum

September 14, 2024 – January 5, 2025
Brandon Ballengée  RIP Great Auk: After John James Audubon, 1858/2023 Bien edition chromolithograph 26 x 39 in., unframed

BRANDON BALLENGÉE

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness)
Nov 10, 2023 - Jan 27, 2024
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023

Categories: news

Tags:

Brandon Ballengée participates in Breath(e) at Hammer Museum

hammer museum

Brandon Ballengée participates in Breath(e) at Hammer Museum

Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice

September 14, 2024 – January 5, 2025

Part of Getty’s region-wide initiative PST ART: Art and Science Collide, the Hammer presents Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice, organized by guest co-curators Glenn Kaino and Mika Yoshitake. The exhibition considers environmental art practices that address the climate crisis and anthropogenic disasters and their inescapable intersection with equity and social justice issues. Breath(e) was conceived during the height of the global COVID-19 pandemic and America’s racial reckoning in 2020, and as such, explores pressing issues related to the ethics of climate justice while proposing pragmatic and philosophical approaches to spur discussion and resolution. The exhibition strives to challenge and deconstruct polarized political attitudes surrounding climate justice in America and offers new perspectives on land and indigenous rights of nature.

Related

germanisches nationalmuseum logo

Brandon Ballengée at HELLO NATURE

October 3, 2024 - March 2, 2025
hammer museum

Brandon Ballengée participates in Breath(e) at Hammer Museum

September 14, 2024 – January 5, 2025
Brandon Ballengée  RIP Great Auk: After John James Audubon, 1858/2023 Bien edition chromolithograph 26 x 39 in., unframed

BRANDON BALLENGÉE

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness)
Nov 10, 2023 - Jan 27, 2024
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023

Categories: news

Tags:

BRANDON BALLENGÉE

Brandon Ballengee

Brandon Ballengée

Lives and works in Louisiana, USA

ARTIST BIO

Brandon Ballengée (b. 1974, Arnaudville, Louisiana; lives in Arnaudville) is an artist, biologist, and environmental activist. Since the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Ballengée has focused his artistic practice on Gulf of Mexico ecologies, which represents an extension of his ecological fieldwork and laboratory research. He is an adjunct professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Tulane University, New Orleans. In 2016, Ballengée and his wife, Aurore Ballengée, founded the Atelier de la Nature, an eco-educational campus, sculpture garden, and nature reserve.

Ballengée has had solo exhibitions at the CAIRN Centre d’art, Digne-les-Bains, France (2022); Acadiana Center for the Arts, Lafayette, Louisiana (2021); University of Wyoming Art Museum, Laramie (2016); Museum Het Nieuwe Domein, Sittard, Netherlands (2014); Château de Chamarande, Essonne, France (2013); and the Royal Institution of Great Britian, London. Ballengée is the recipient of awards and fellowships for his art and research including the COAL Awards Special Jury Prize (2022); a Guggenheim Fellowship (2021); Creative Capital Award (2019); Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian American Art Museum (2017); a National Academies Keck Futures Initiative (2015, 2016); and a Conservation Leadership Award and Fellowship from the National Audubon Society’s TogetherGreen Program (2011). He was named a Grist 50 Emerging Environmental Leader (2020). He holds a PhD in transdisciplinary art and biology from Plymouth University, England, in association with the Hochschule für Gestaltung, Zurich (2014).  

Related

germanisches nationalmuseum logo

Brandon Ballengée at HELLO NATURE

October 3, 2024 - March 2, 2025
hammer museum

Brandon Ballengée participates in Breath(e) at Hammer Museum

September 14, 2024 – January 5, 2025
Brandon Ballengée  RIP Great Auk: After John James Audubon, 1858/2023 Bien edition chromolithograph 26 x 39 in., unframed

BRANDON BALLENGÉE

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness)
Nov 10, 2023 - Jan 27, 2024
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023

Categories: artists

Tags:

BRANDON BALLENGÉE

Brandon Ballengée  RIP Great Auk: After John James Audubon, 1858/2023 Bien edition chromolithograph 26 x 39 in., unframed
Is Apple a Design Company?

Apple is more than a tech company; it became a culture unto itself, a passion of most of people and the birthplace of the world’s most revolutionized products.

Madison Ave New York

Brandon Ballengée

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness)

November 10, 2023 – January 27, 2024

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness), Brandon Ballengée’s debut solo exhibition at the gallery, presents a poignant and multifaceted exploration of the interplay between art, biodiversity, and humanity.  Showcasing more than three dozen works selected from the 1990s to 2023, the exhibition is a testament to Ballengée’s engagement with the ongoing ecological crisis and the profound ramifications of species loss, prominently coined as the Anthropocene or Sixth Great Extinction. It is an artistic intervention that beckons viewers to confront the realities and consider the urgent need for preservation and conservation.  L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness) runs from November 10 through December 30, 2023, with the OPENING RECEPTION on Friday, November 10, 6 – 8 PM, accompanied by CENTRAL PARK BIRD WALK on November 11 and THE ARTIST TALK on November 18 at the gallery.

Brandon Ballengée, an artist, biologist, and environmental advocate, utilizes a myriad of mediums and artistic expressions to mirror the current ecological predicament.  At the core of this exhibition lie three distinct series, each foraging into the complexities of our environmental challenges:

FRAMES OF ABSENCE

‘Frameworks of Absence,’ initiated in 2006, meticulously embodies the extinct species’ haunting absence.  By physically cutting images of vanished animals from historical prints, Ballengée forges what he terms ‘Frameworks of Absence.’  These assemblages not only signify the species lost but also involve a transformative event, where the burned remains of these cut images are gathered in urns, symbolizing a personal and collective remembrance.

THE CRUDE OIL PAINTINGS

The ‘Crude Oil Paintings’ series, which commenced in 2020, immerses itself in the enigma of lost fish species endemic to the Gulf of Mexico post-Deepwater Horizon spill. The artist embarks on an arduous quest to portray these missing creatures, drawing from preserved specimens and utilizing contaminated sediments and dispersants to craft their haunting portraits. This series serves as a contemplative reflection on what is obscured and irretrievably lost due to our collective treatment of the environment.

SOS PAINTINGS

Continuing his artistic journey into the present and beyond, the ‘SOS Paintings’ provide an introspective look into the looming threat of deep-water mining in the Gulf of Mexico.  These colossal paintings, created using unconventional materials like thrift bed sheets and latex house paint, are interpretations of deep-sea species at risk due to this emerging deep-sea mining industry.  Ballengée captures the mystery and beauty of these enigmatic creatures and ignites contemplation on the potential repercussions of human intervention in this untouched abyssal zone.

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness) is an artistic journey reflecting our ecological plight. Through three compelling series, ‘Frameworks of Absence,’ ‘The Crude Oil Paintings,’ and ‘SOS Paintings,’  Brandon Ballengée epitomizes the essence of loss caused by species extinction and environmental perils. The exhibition’s haunting images of extinct species, the ghostly portrayal of lost Gulf creatures, and the impending threat of deep-sea mining converge. As a catalyst for reflection, the exhibition urges viewers to contemplate the implications of our collective actions on the fragile fabric of our environment.  L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness) is a visual poetry and a thought-provoking crusade.


REVIEW:

https://www.villagevoice.com/ecology-minded-artist-brandon-ballengee-pictures-what-weve-lost/

WATCH THE VIDEOS

RELATED:

germanisches nationalmuseum logo

Brandon Ballengée at HELLO NATURE

October 3, 2024 - March 2, 2025
hammer museum

Brandon Ballengée participates in Breath(e) at Hammer Museum

September 14, 2024 – January 5, 2025
Brandon Ballengée  RIP Great Auk: After John James Audubon, 1858/2023 Bien edition chromolithograph 26 x 39 in., unframed

BRANDON BALLENGÉE

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness)
Nov 10, 2023 - Jan 27, 2024
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023

Categories: exhibitions

Tags:

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

Madison Ave New York

Picasso, Welcome to America

June 15 – September 27, 2023

R.C. Baker

Brandon Ballengée

Romare Bearden

Deborah Buck

Shijia Chen

Billy Copley

Eileen Foti

Björn Meyer-Ebrecht

Jaye Moon

Pablo Picasso

André Raffray

Janet Taylor Pickett

Zhang Hongtu

Every artist since the early 20th century has been influenced by Pablo Picasso.  The protean painter/ sculptor/ printmaker/ ceramicist helped define what “modern” art once was – and is still becoming.  In 1939, MoMA’s staff was gathering 300 works by the world’s “most famous living artist” (according to the museum’s press release) for Picasso: Forty Years of His Art.  A centerpiece of the exhibit was Guernica, his grisaille mural decrying the destruction of the small Basque town by Nazi bombers, in 1937.

Along with Michelangelo and Rembrandt, the name Picasso (1881-1973) has become a synonym – a cliché, even – for “artist.”  But none of the artists in Picasso, Welcome to America see the Spanish-born titan as an old hat.  Instead, these ten Americans find in the European trailblazer constant inspiration and ongoing challenge.  Zhang Hongtu imagines Chairman Mao exposed by glaring illumination similar to the all-seeing lantern in Guernica.  Jaye Moon also reimagines Picasso’s anti-war masterpiece, in When Bob Dylan Meets Picasso, Guernica – using Lego bricks in Braille rather than paint.

The bodies and masks in another Picasso touchstone, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (1907), come under scrutiny from Eileen Foti and André Raffray through substitution and homage.  Billy Copley finds masks in unlikely surroundings, while Janet Taylor Pickett moves effigies aside to place her powerful female figure at center stage.  Deborah Buck turns Picasso’s infamously harsh male gaze around, painting surreal figures that might be asking, “Who’s crying now?”  In Weary of Treading the Earth, from 1945, Romare Bearden, working in watercolor and ink rather than his later signature collage, energizes cubist space with a circus-like palette.  R.C. Baker riffs beyond Picasso’s Blue and Rose periods through primary-colored aluminum printing plates.  Björn Meyer-Ebrecht’s dynamic wood and enamel sculpture strips the figure to cubist angles and voids, while Brandon Ballengée searches for animals that, like Picasso’s minotaurs, are no longer with us. Original works by Pablo Picasso will also be on view, commemorating the 50th anniversary of his death.

All of the artists in this exhibition have been influenced by Picasso’s experiments with form and perspective – his breaking of traditional and academic rules.  Some of the work here also comments on his darker side, while other pieces engage with the social and political aspects of Picasso’s art.  Ultimately, these ten contemporary artists in Picasso, Welcome to America appreciate the formal and aesthetic complexity of a constant innovator.  This great artist was effectively barred from ever visiting the United States because he was a member of the French Communist Party.  But the joke was on the Feds – Picasso has been in America all along.

VIDEOS

Play Video about Brandon Ballengée, R.C. Baker
Play Video about Romare Beardon, Björn Meyer-Ebrecht, André Raffray
Play Video about Zhang Hongtu

RELATED:

germanisches nationalmuseum logo

Brandon Ballengée at HELLO NATURE

October 3, 2024 - March 2, 2025
hammer museum

Brandon Ballengée participates in Breath(e) at Hammer Museum

September 14, 2024 – January 5, 2025
Brandon Ballengée  RIP Great Auk: After John James Audubon, 1858/2023 Bien edition chromolithograph 26 x 39 in., unframed

BRANDON BALLENGÉE

L’Art de la Solitude (The Art of Loneliness)
Nov 10, 2023 - Jan 27, 2024
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
TANGO | Summer Exhibition | July 13 - August 17, 2022

TANGO

Summer Exhibition
July 13 - August 17, 2022
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
Pitches & Scripts

PITCHES & SCRIPTS

Group Exhibition
January 20 - March 11, 2023
Zhang Hongtu at Museo Picasso Málaga 

Zhang Hongtu at Museo Picasso Málaga 

October 3, 2023 - March 31, 2024
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
Pitches & Scripts

PITCHES & SCRIPTS

Group Exhibition
January 20 - March 11, 2023
(DE)CONSTRUCTING IDEOLOGY: THE CULTURAL REVOLUTION AND BEYOND November 13, 2022 to March 12, 2023

Zhang Hongtu lectures and exhibits at the Wende Museum

November 13, 2022 - March 12, 2023
TANGO | Summer Exhibition | July 13 - August 17, 2022

TANGO

Summer Exhibition
July 13 - August 17, 2022
Zhang Hongtu

VAN GOGH / BODHIDHARMA

Zhang Hongtu
March 25 - April 27, 2022
LOVE DIFFERENCE

LOVE DIFFERENCE

Eric Brown, Janet Taylor Pickett, Zhang Hongtu
May 15 - June 15, 2021
the church sag harbor logo

Deborah Buck Participates in Women and Humor

June 23 - September 1, 2024
Deborah Buck Stand Off, 2024 Acrylic and sumi ink on panel 38.25 x 50.25 in.

Deborah Buck

Witches Bridge
May 16 - June 29, 2024
Deborah Buck Heavy Is The Head, 2023 Acrylic, sumi ink on Archers paper 55 x 156 in. Detail

DEBORAH BUCK

INTO THE WILD: To Crash Is Divine
Sept 28 - Oct 27, 2023
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023
Madison Ave New York Picasso, Welcome to America June 15 – July 31, 2023

PICASSO, WELCOME TO AMERICA

June 15 – Sept 27, 2023