Monica Bonvicini

Interviews by Brainard Carey

Portrait Monica BonviciniCourtesy the artist, © Monica Bonvicini and VG-Bildkunst, Bonn 2022 / Photo by Olaf Heine

Born in Venice, Italy, Monica Bonvicini currently lives and works in Berlin, Germany. The artist studied at the Universität der Künste in Berlin and the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, CA.

Since the 1990s, Monica Bonvicini has had numerous exhibitions and projects around the world. Upcoming, the artist will have a major solo exhibition at Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin (2022). Other significant solo exhibitions include Hurricanes and other Catastrophes at Kunstmuseum Winterthur, Switzerland (2022), I Don’t Like You Very Much at Kunsthaus Graz, Austria (2022), LOVER’S MATERIAL at Kunsthalle Bielefeld, Germany (2020), I CANNOT HIDE MY ANGER at Belvedere 21 Museum of Contemporary Art, Vienna (2019), As Walls Keep Shifting at OGR, Turin, Italy (2019), Monica Bonvicini at Berlinische Galerie, Berlin (2017), her hand around the room at BALTIC Center for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, Newcastle (2016), BOTH ENDS at Kunsthalle Fridericianum, Kassel (2011), Desire Deseise Devise at Deichtorhallen, Hamburg (2012), Monica Bonvicini at Frac des Pays de la Loire, Carquefou, France (2009), Monica Bonvicini / Tom Burr at Kunstmuseum Basel, Switzerland (2009), Focus: Monica Bonvicini–Light Me Black at Art Institute of Chicago (2009), NEVER MISSING A LINE at Sculpture Center, New York (2007), Monica Bonvicini at Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2002), among others.

Bonvicini has earned several awards, including the Golden Lion at the Biennale di Venezia (1999); the Preis der Nationalgalerie für junge Kunst, from the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (2005); the Rolandpreis für Kunst for Art in Public Space from the Foundation Bremen, Germany (2013); the Hans Platschek Prize for Art and Writing, Germany (2019); the Oskar Kokoschka Prize, Austria (2020).

Monica Bonvicini’s works can be found permanently installed in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London; on the waterfront at Bjørvika, before the Den Norske Opera & Ballett House, Oslo; the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art (2003-2019); and the Weserburg Museum of Modern Art, Bremen, among others.

Monica Bonvicini, Chainswing Rings & Stripes 2024 Galvanized steel chains, chain quick fasteners, belting leather, rivets, galvanized steel rings Dimensions variable Courtesy the artist and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York / Los Angeles

Monica Bonvicini, Stay Home 2024 Silkscreen and tempera on Fabriano paper 78 3/4 x 59 inches; 200 x 150 cm (unframed) 82 5/8 x 63 inches; 210 x 160 cm (framed) Courtesy the artist and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York / Los Angeles

Monica Bonvicini, Installation view, Put All Heaven in a Rage, Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York, 2024. Photo by Pierre Le Hors Courtesy the artist and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York / Los Angeles