Barry McGee Editions

BORN
1966, San Francisco, CA
Lives and works in San Francisco, CA

EDUCATION
1991 BFA, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA

BIOGRAPHY
Barry McGee makes art that is meant to be seen on the street. Like the graffiti which embellishes run-down urban environments, these objects are often made and exhibited without permission of the property owners. The smoking overturned truck, is a form of public sculpture. From the outside, the abandoned vehicle calls attention to such issues as urban decay and civil warfare. The interior, with its collection of video monitors that flash and spin colorful signs and symbols, reminds us that art thrives in unlikely places. Barry McGee comes from a background of creating unsanctioned work on city streets in his native San Francisco. Signing his works with the tag “Twist”, the artist draws his force and inspiration from the contrast and tension that exists between the city center and the suburbs, between wealthy districts and the slums. McGee’s signature tags and markings have inserted an element of the individual and the handmade into a depersonalized urban landscape that has become increasingly crowded with corporate logos, trademarks and advertisements. His visual language is at the same time eclectic, ephemeral, radical and above all heavily influenced by the daily realities of the city. McGee’s complex installations convey a sense of vitality and chaos, juxtaposed with a precarious nature and sense of alienation. Large-scale wall murals, clusters of small framed drawings and snapshots, various tools and other street detritus make their way into his installations in an almost symphonic fashion. Intricate paintings are executed then rolled over with latex paint, echoing the “buffs” that cover graffiti in urban areas. Clusters of glass bottles hang in a corner with painted portraits of derelicts and other characterizations of street personalities. McGee has exhibited his works internationally including Deitch Projects, New York, UCLA Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, Foundation Cartier, Paris, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, Fondazione Prada, Milan, Brandeis University’s The Rose, the 2001 Venice Biennale, the 2002 Liverpool Biennial, the Meat Market in Melbourne, Australia, a collaborative project with Kaldor Art Projects and the National Gallery of Victoria and most recently at Museum Het Domein, the Netherlands. McGee currently lives and works in San Francisco, California.

SOLO EXHIBTIONS
2008

• “A Moment for Reflection – New Work by Lydia Fong”, Ratio 3, San Francisco, CA
• They Don’t Make This Anymore, Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, New Castle, England

2007

• Advanced Mature Work, Redcat, Los Angeles, CA
• Butler Gallery, The Castle, Kilkenny, Ireland Watari Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo Japan

2006

• “We have a friend in common”, Nicolai Wallner gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark
• “The art of Robert Pimple”, Paule Anglim gallery, San Francisco, CA

2005

• “Easy Tonto”, Stuart Shave/Modern Art, London, England
• “One More Thing”, Deitch Projects, New York, NY
• “John Kaldor Art Projects”, Metropolitan Meat Market, Melbourne, Australia
• ‘Things Are Really Getting Better”, Museum Het Domein Sittard, Netherlands

2004

• Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Boston, MA
• Prada Foundation, Milan, Italy
• Modern Art, London, England
• Paule Anglim, San Francisco, CA

2000

• UCLA Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, CA

1999

• “Hoss”, Rice University Art Gallery, Houston, TX
• “The Buddy System”, Deitch Projects, New York, NY

1998

• Regards, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN

1995

• Installation, Art & Design Studio/ K&T Lionheart LTD, Boston, MA

1994

• Installation, Center for the Arts Yerba Buena Gardens, San Francisco, CA

1993

• Installation, Museum Laser Segall, Sao Paulo, Brazil

GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2009

• “McGee, Templeton, Pettibon”, curated by Aaron Rose, CC: Circle Culture Gallery, Berlin, Germany

2008

• “Life on Mars”, Carnegie International, Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA
• “The Big Sad: Barry McGee & Clare Rojas”, Riverside Art Museum, Riverside, CA
• “Dripsy”, Galerie Olivier Robert, Paris, France
• “Len Lye: A Colour Box”, Arcade Fine Arts, London, England

2007

• “American Art in China”, organized by the Guggenheim Museum, MoCA Shanghai, Shanghai, China
• “Alpha”, Ratio 3, San Francisco, CA
• “EUPHORION”, Pierogi Gallery, Leipzig, Germany
• “Kinky Sex (Makes the World Go Round)”, Lizabeth Oliveria Gallery, Los Angeles, CA

2006

• “Spank the monkey”, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, England
• Group show, Stuart Shave/Modern Art, London, England
• “Meditations In An Emergency”, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, MI

2005

• On Line, The Louisiana Museum, Denmark

2004–2009

• "Beautiful Losers: Contemporary Art And Street Culture", Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, Ohio; curated by Christian Strike and Aaron Rose [catalog]; travels to Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, CA; Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach, CA; The Contemporary Museum, Baltimore, MD; The University of South Florida Contemporary Art Museum, Tampa, FL; Fondazione La Triennale, Milan, Italy; Le Tri Postal, Lille, France; Muzeum Sztuki, Lodz, Poland; La Casa Encendida, Madrid, Spain

2004

• “Monument to Now”, The Dakis Joannou Collection, Athens, Greece

2002

• Liverpool Biennale, Liverpool, England Drawing Now, Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY

2001

• “Holdfast, Barry McGee & Margaret Kilgallen”, Deste Foundation Centre for Contemporary Art, Athens, Greece
• “Un Art Populaire”, Foundation Cartier pour l'art contemporain, Paris, France
• “Widely Unknown”, Deitch Projects, New York, NY
• Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy

2000

• “Street Market”, Parco Gallery, Tokyo, Japan, Deitch Projects, New York, NY
• “Indelible Market”, Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, PA

1998

• “Art From Around the Bay”, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA

1997

• “Drawing Installation”, Galerie Tanya Rumpff-Harlem, Netherlands
• “Drawing Today”, San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco, CA
• John Bergruen Gallery, San Francisco, CA

1996

• SECA Art Award, Installation, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA
• “WAVEFORMS”, Installation, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA
• “Figureheads & Red Herrings”, Koplin Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
• “Acme Custom”, Acme Gallery, San Francisco, CA
• “Wall Drawings”, The Drawing Center, New York, NY
• “Folk”, Holly Solomon Gallery, New York, NY

1995

• “Degenerate Art”, The Lab, San Francisco, CA
• “Post No Bills”, Acme Gallery, Wall Installation, San Francisco, CA
• Pro Arts Gallery, Oakland, CA
• “Missed Connections”, Market Street Installation, Luggage Store/509 Cultural Center Annex, San Francisco, CA
• Installation, Street Art Exhibition, Los Angeles, CA
• “The Library”, New Langton Arts, San Francisco, CA
• “Big Jesus Trash Can”, Victoria Room, San Francisco, CA

1993

• Twelve Bay Area Painters: The Eureka Fellowship Winners, San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, CA
• “Texture of Nature”, Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, CA
• “Folklore”, Luggage Store/509 Cultural Center, San Francisco, CA
• Installation, La Raza Graphics Center, San Francisco, CA

1992

• “U.C. Santa Cruz”, Mary Porter Sesnon Gallery, Santa Cruz, CA

1991

• “Wet Paint”, Southern Exposure, San Francisco, CA
• “3/Play”, Southern Exposure, San Francisco, CA
• Installation, Diego Rivera Galley, San Francisco, CA
• “Wall of Resistance, Wall of Shame”, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
• “Art Against the War”, A.T.A. Gallery, San Francisco, CA
• “Multicultural Show”, Diego Rivera Gallery, San Francisco, CA

BOOKS AND CATALOGUES
2008

• Glasner, Barbara, Patterns 2. Design, Art and Architecture. pp. 208-209

2005

• The Louisana Museum, Denmark Things are Really Getting Better, Museum Het Domein Sittard

2004

• Platow, Raphaela, Barry McGee, The Rose Art Museum of Brandeis University.

2002

• Celant, Germano, Barry McGee, Fondazione Prada.

2000

• Street Market, Tokyo: Little More Publishers
• Baker, Alex. Indelible Market. Philadelphia: Institute of Contemporary Art

1999

• Buddy System, New York: Deitch Projects

AWARDS
1996

• SECA Art Award San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

1994

• The Creative Work Fund, Walter and Elise Haas Fund

1993

• Lila Wallace, Readers Digest International Artist Program
• Eureka Fellowship, Fleishaker Foundation

1991

• Merit Scholarship, San Francisco Art Institute

1990

• Carson Paper Award, Merit Scholarship, San Francisco Art Institute

1989

• Sobel Scholarship, San Francisco Art Institute

TEACHING
1996

• Young Mission Power, Mission Cultural Center, San Francisco, CA

1995

• Muni Key Stop Program, San Francisco Art Commission Wall Installation, 1035 Howars St., Creative Work Fund, San Francisco, CA

1994

• 509 Cultural Center/San Francisco Redevelopment Agency

1992

• California Conservation Corps, Franklin Park Mural Life on the Water/School of the Arts, Installation, San Francisco, CA
• McClymonds High School, Artist Resident Program, Oakland, CA
• Mural, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, CA
• S.F. Art Commission, Art In Transit Program, San Francisco, CA

1991

• McClymonds High School, Visiting Artist Program, Oakland, CA

BIBLIOGRAPHY
2008

• Kuo, Michelle. Barry Mcgee, Artforum, April 2008: 338-339.
• Gateshead: Barry McGee, Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, The Art Newspaper, March, p. 53
• Barry McGee, MUSAC, Volume II, p. 318-32

2007

• Sarica, Frederico. Don't Stop: Dumbo and Barry McGee in Conversation, Mousse, September-November, p. 83-85

2006

• ‘La ley de la calle se impone en ARCO, que tira de artistas urbanos, de spray y de graffity’, El Pais, February 11: 60.
• Azkarraga, Joseba, Punto de Mira, La Razon, February 10: 3
• Torresd, G .David. The power of urban art. ABCDARCO, February 12, Issue 4:13.
• Virus, EL Zirus, One more thing, Serie B, Issue 8: 78-81.
• Fallah, Amir H. Barry McGee, Beautiful Decay, December 2006, p. 90- 98

2005

• Things are really getting better, Museum Het Domein Sittard Kold, Anders Noget tegner sig, Louisana Magasin, November, Issue 19: 34.
• Mendelsohn, Adam E., Review Time Out New York, July 14, 2005.
• Steyck,CR, One more thing, Juxtapoz, Fall Special. Deitch Projects, ARTnews, October: 164.
• Beck, Olly, Nightmare on Vyner Street, The Critical Friend, Issue 3: 6-9.
• Deitch Projects, The New Yorker, July.
• Smith, Roberta, Urban outsider artists evoke society’s margins, The New York Times, August 3, 2005.
• Lack, Jessica. Riot On An Empty Street, i-D, Issue 258, September.
• Johnson, Dominic. Review, frieze, Issue 93, September.
• JL, The Guide, Guardian, September 17 2005: 37.
• Heuer, Megan. Barry McGee: One More Thing, The Brooklyn Rail, July/August.

2004

• Safe, Georgina. From a Different Cloth, the Weekend Australian, October 30- 31.
• Perez, Christopher. Review Contemporary, No. 66.
• Barclay, Alison. Just spraying alive, Herald Sun, October 26.
• Roberts, Jo. How’s this for a Twist?, the Age, October 27: 7A3.
• Pheasant, Bill. Melbourne’s Meat Market a work for modern art, Australian Financial Review, October 28: 48.

2002

• Bennett, Oliver. The Quality of Mersey, The Observer Review, September 15.
• Mandrini, Riccarda. Street Art, L’Uomo Vogue, August 2002.
• Baker, Alex. Stickers, Street Markets, Fantasy Folks Ruminations from Philadelphia, Tokyo, May/June 2002.
• Joo, Eungie, The New Folk, Flash Art, May/June 2002.
• Helfand, Glen. Barry McGee, Artforum.com, May 16 2002.
• Giovannini, Stefano. Talent Show, Nylon, February 2002.
• Heartney, Eleanor. Speaking for Themselves, Art in America, February 2002: 53-55.
• Joo, Eungie. The New Folk, Flash Art, May/June 2002.

2001

• Powers, Bill. Quiet! Dad is dusting his G.I Joes, The New York Times, December 30 2001:1, 8.
• Smith, Roberta. Widely Unknown, The New York Times, December 14, 2001.
• Aletti, Vince. Top 10 of 2001, Artforum, December 2001.
• Juxtapoz, Sept/Oct 2001, #34: 6.
• Schmidt, Jason. The Venice Biennale, V Magazine, Sept/Oct 2001.
• Birnbaum, Daniel. More is Less, Artforum, September 2001: 55-57.
• Cohen, Michael. Street Market, Flash Art, January-February 2001.
• Strength, March 2001.
• Amos, Sandy. Street Market, zingmagazine

2000

• Valdez, Sarah. Street Market at Deitch Projects, Art in America, December Avgikos, Jan.
• Street Market, Artforum, December 2000
• Oliver, Suzanne. Bombs Away, The Face, November 2000: 50.
• Yablonsky, Linda. Street Market, Time Out New York, November 2-9 2000.
• Flannigan, Eileen. SoHO Exhibit Sparks Mental Flames, New York Amsterdan News, October 26-November 1 2000.
• Juicy Fruits, Tokion, November-December 2000.
• Siegal, Nina. Exhibit Becomes Opportunity for Arrest, The New York Times, October 10, 2000: B4.
• Stecyk, C.R. Some Other Small Planet, Super X Media.
• Venus, Rosa. The Artists in Their Studios, Flaunt Magazine, March 2000.

1999

• Mccormick, Carlo. Barry McGee’s Twist of Faith, Paper: 33.
• Leffingwell, Edward. Barry McGee at Deitch Projects, Art in America.
• Scherr, Apollinaire. Stealing Beauty, San Francisco, November 1999.
• Smith, Roberta. The New York Times, April 1999.
• Blake, Nayland. Barry McGee, Interview Magazine, February 1999: 44-46.
• Kalm, James. Old School, New School, NY Arts.

1998

• Caniglia, Julia. ArtForum, 1998.

1996

• Bonetti, David. San Francisco Examiner, September 1996.

1994

• Baker, Kenneth. San Francisco Chronicle, June 1994.