Evan Gruzis (Milwaukee, WI, b. 1979) Visit the Artist's Site
Cast marble and resin, cast bronze, 2009
34 x 30 1/2 x 57 inches
The art of Evan Gruzis explores the banal and the theatrical - empty graphic gestures and pop culture objects combine with traditional motifs to define a space that is both vapid and seductive. His work has been likened to "the sardonic wit of Brett Easton Ellis," in its slick technique of manipulating materials and visual language. What you see is often only half there or mockingly not there at all. Monument to Fashion plays on the classical female nude by presenting the traditional form not in carved, but in cast marble, its bronze ornamental detail is relegated to a pair removable sunglasses, its casual recline and placement on the floor as opposed to being elevated atop an elaborate plinth, is both enticing and irreverent. Gruzis’ choice for a model is not human or divine, but a commercial mannequin, a model of a model of a model, which lends a powerful aloofness to her identity, removing her from any sense of the real and asserting her beauty as purely artificial. Evan Gruzis was born in Milwaukee in 1979. He lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.
Exhibited: Art Basel Miami Beach, December 3 - 6, 2009 / Deitch Projects, New York, NY
