Claude Closky was born in 1963 in Paris, where he lives and works.
Closky is a leading figure in contemporary art in France and the author of a protean body of work, including paintings, websites, sculptures, photographs, drawings, videos, collages, books and sound works, amongst others.
His work is based on a keen observation of the media and the world of communication, resulting in a critical and humorous analysis of dominant modes of representation, particularly those found in advertising.
For Closky unashamedly embraces the conventions of advertising, media such as posters, banners and magazines, and the everyday means of production and diffusion. Closky does not resort to irony – which would be the easier option –; he does not distance himself from what he subverts. His self-portraits (having lost his head, as a supermodel revelling in her giant ice lolly, as a bean, as the satisfied owner of items from a catalogue…), his contributions to publications such as L'Œil de Claude or his appearance as a ‘shopping boy' in a women's magazine, show him to be alienated from the world he depicts. He does not feign ignorance and employs a form of humour that rests both on his closeness to what he targets and on his restraint from passing personal judgement – a mere acquiescence to the consensus is enough to compromise its effectiveness.
His work are exhibited in numerous institutions, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Miró Foundation in Barcelona, the MoMA in New York and the Akbank Art Centre in Istanbul. In 2005, the artist was also awarded the Marcel Duchamp Prize.
Artworks
Book, 302 pages
6.3 x 7.87 in ( 16 x 20 cm )
Book, 204 pages
11.02 x 8.66 in ( 28 x 22 cm )
