Edward Kienholz
Encyclopedia
Edward Kienholz was an American
installation
artist
whose work was highly critical of aspects of modern life. From 1972 onwards, he assembled much of his artwork in close collaboration with his artistic partner and wife, Nancy Reddin Kienholz
. Thoughout much of their career, the work of the Kienholzes was more appreciated in Europe than in their native United States, though American museums have featured their art more prominently since the 1990s.
Edward Ralph Kienholz was born in Fairfield, Washington
, in the eastern part of the state. He grew up on a farm, learning carpentry
, drafting
and mechanical skills. He studied at Eastern Washington College of Education
and, briefly, at Whitworth College in Spokane
, but did not receive any formal artistic training. After a series of odd jobs, working as an orderly in a psychiatric hospital, manager of a dance band, used car salesman, caterer, decorator and vacuum cleaner salesman, Kienholz settled in Los Angeles
, where he became involved with the avant-garde
art scene of the day.
In 1956, he opened the NOW Gallery, for which Michael Bowen
designed the sign; that year he met grad student Walter Hopps
, who owned the Syndell Gallery. They co-organized the All-City Art Festival, then in 1957, with poet Bob Alexander, they opened the Ferus Gallery
on North La Cienega Boulevard. The Ferus Gallery soon became a focus of avant garde art and culture in the Los Angeles area.
Despite his lack of formal artistic training, Kienholz began to employ his mechanical and carpentry skills in making collage
paintings and relief
s assembled from materials salvaged from the alleys and sidewalks of the city. In 1958 he sold his share of the Ferus Gallery to buy a Los Angeles house and studio and to concentrate on his art, creating free-standing, large-scale environmental tableaux. He continued to participate in activities at the Ferus Gallery, mounting a show of his first assemblage works in 1959.
In 1961, Kienholz completed his first large-scale installation, Roxy's, a room-sized environment which he showed at the Ferus Gallery in 1962. This artwork later caused a stir at the documenta
4 exhibition in 1968.
A 1966 show at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
(LACMA) drew considerable controversy over his assemblage, Back Seat Dodge ‘38 (1964). The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors called it "revolting, pornographic and blasphemous" and threatened to withhold financing for the museum unless the tableau was removed from view. A compromise was reached under which the sculpture's car door would remain closed and guarded, to be opened only on the request of a museum patron who was over 18, and only if no children were present in the gallery. The uproar led to more than 200 people lining up to see the work the day the show opened. Ever since, Back Seat Dodge ’38 has drawn crowds. LACMA did not formally acquire the work until 1986.
In 1966, Kienholz began to spend summers in Hope, Idaho
, while still maintaining studio space in Los Angeles. Also around that time, Kienholz produced a series of Concept Tableaux. which consisted of framed text descriptions of artwork that did not yet exist. He would sell these works of early Conceptual Art
(though the term was not in widespread use at the time) for a modest sum, giving the buyer the right (upon payment of a larger fee) to have Kienholz actually construct the artwork.
Kienholz's assemblages of found object
s—the detritus of modern existence, often including figures cast from life—are at times vulgar, brutal, and gruesome, confronting the viewer with questions about human existence and the inhumanity of twentieth-century society. Regarding found materials he said, in 1977, "I really begin to understand any society by going through its junk stores and flea markets. It is a form of education and historical orientation for me. I can see the results of ideas in what is thrown away by a culture."
Kienholz's work commented savagely on racism, aging, sexual stereotypes, poverty, greed, corruption, imperialism, patriotism, religion, alienation, and most of all, moral hypocrisy. Because of their satirical
and antiestablishment
tones, his works have often been linked to the funk art
movement based in San Francisco in the 1960s.
In 1981, Ed Kienholz officially declared that all his work from 1972 on should be retrospectively understood to be co-authored by, and co-signed by, his wife and collaborator, Nancy Reddin Kienholz
. Collectively, they are referred to as "Kienholz." Their work has been widely acclaimed, particularly in Europe
.
In the early 1970s, Kienholz received a grant that permitted him to work in Berlin
. His most important works during this period were based on the Volksempfänger
s (radio receiving apparatus from the National Socialist period in Germany
). In 1973 he was guest artist of the German Academic Exchange Service
in Berlin.
In 1973, Kienholz and Reddin moved from Los Angeles to Hope
, Idaho
and for the next twenty years they divided their time between Berlin and Idaho. In 1976 he received a Guggenheim Fellowship
. In 1977 he opened "The Faith and Charity in Hope Gallery" at their Idaho studio.
Kienholz died suddeny in Idaho on June 10, 1994, from a heart attack while hiking in the mountains near their home. He was buried in a Kienholz installation: Robert Hughes
wrote, "[H]is corpulent, embalmed body was wedged into the front seat of a brown 1940 Packard coupe. There was a dollar and a deck of cards in his pocket, a bottle of 1931 Chianti beside him and the ashes of his dog Smash in the back. He was set for the afterlife. To the whine of bagpipes, the Packard, steered by his widow Nancy Reddin Kienholz, rolled like a funeral barge into the big hole."
Retrospectives of Kienholz's work have been infrequent, due to the difficulty and expense of assembling literally room-sized sculptures and installations from widely-dispersed collections around the world. Kienholz work has often been difficult to view, both because of its subject matter, and the logistics of displaying it. Relatively few of the major works had been on display in the US, the Kienholz's native land, though American museums have now started to feature their work more prominently, especially after a major retrospective (posthumous) exhibition in 1996 at the Whitney Museum of American Art
.
The diverse and freely improvised materials and methods used in Kienholz works pose an unusual challenge to art conservators who try to preserve the artist's original intent and appearances. Treatment of Back Seat Dodge '38 for clothes moths presented an awkward situation, which was deftly addressed by the Getty Conservation Institute
and the J. Paul Getty Museum
in behalf of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
, owner of the artwork.
— Exhibition catalog of the last major installation assembled by Kienholz before Ed's death, at the National Gallery, London
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
installation
Installation art
Installation art describes an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces, whereas exterior interventions are often called Land art; however, the boundaries between...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
whose work was highly critical of aspects of modern life. From 1972 onwards, he assembled much of his artwork in close collaboration with his artistic partner and wife, Nancy Reddin Kienholz
Nancy Reddin Kienholz
Nancy Reddin Kienholz is an American mixed media artist based in Hope, Idaho. She works in installation art, assemblage, photography, and lenticular printing. She is most famous for her collaborations with her husband and creative partner Edward Kienholz.-Early life:Reddin was born in Los...
. Thoughout much of their career, the work of the Kienholzes was more appreciated in Europe than in their native United States, though American museums have featured their art more prominently since the 1990s.
Early life and artistic development
Fairfield, Washington
Fairfield is a town in Spokane County, Washington, United States. The population was 612 at the 2010 census.-History:In 1888, E.H. Morrison named Fairfield after his wife's hometown. Fairfield was officially incorporated on March 3, 1905.-Events:...
, in the eastern part of the state. He grew up on a farm, learning carpentry
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
, drafting
Drafting
Drafting or draughting may refer to:* Campdrafting, an Australian equestrian sport* Drafting , slipstreaming* Technical drawing, the act and discipline of composing diagrams that communicates how something functions or is to be constructed. E.g.:** Architectural drawing** Electrical drawing**...
and mechanical skills. He studied at Eastern Washington College of Education
Eastern Washington University
Eastern Washington University is an American public, coeducational university located in Cheney, Washington.Founded in 1882, the university is academically divided into four colleges: Arts and Letters; Business and Public Administration; Science, Health and Engineering; and Social & Behavioral...
and, briefly, at Whitworth College in Spokane
Spokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
, but did not receive any formal artistic training. After a series of odd jobs, working as an orderly in a psychiatric hospital, manager of a dance band, used car salesman, caterer, decorator and vacuum cleaner salesman, Kienholz settled in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, where he became involved with the avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
art scene of the day.
In 1956, he opened the NOW Gallery, for which Michael Bowen
Michael Bowen (artist)
Michael Bowen was an American fine artist known as one of the co-founders of the late 20th and 21st century Visionary art movements...
designed the sign; that year he met grad student Walter Hopps
Walter Hopps
Walter Hopps was an American museum director and curator of contemporary art. His obituary in the Washington Post described him as a "sort of a gonzo museum director -- elusive, unpredictable, outlandish in his range, jagged in his vision, heedless of rules."Hopps was born in Eagle Rock, Los...
, who owned the Syndell Gallery. They co-organized the All-City Art Festival, then in 1957, with poet Bob Alexander, they opened the Ferus Gallery
Ferus Gallery
The Ferus Gallery was a contemporary art gallery operating from 1957-1966. In 1957 it was located at 736-A North La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles, California...
on North La Cienega Boulevard. The Ferus Gallery soon became a focus of avant garde art and culture in the Los Angeles area.
Despite his lack of formal artistic training, Kienholz began to employ his mechanical and carpentry skills in making collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
paintings and relief
Relief
Relief is a sculptural technique. The term relief is from the Latin verb levo, to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is thus to give the impression that the sculpted material has been raised above the background plane...
s assembled from materials salvaged from the alleys and sidewalks of the city. In 1958 he sold his share of the Ferus Gallery to buy a Los Angeles house and studio and to concentrate on his art, creating free-standing, large-scale environmental tableaux. He continued to participate in activities at the Ferus Gallery, mounting a show of his first assemblage works in 1959.
In 1961, Kienholz completed his first large-scale installation, Roxy's, a room-sized environment which he showed at the Ferus Gallery in 1962. This artwork later caused a stir at the documenta
Documenta
documenta is an exhibition of modern and contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau which took place in Kassel at that time...
4 exhibition in 1968.
A 1966 show at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is an art museum in Los Angeles, California. It is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles, adjacent to the George C. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits....
(LACMA) drew considerable controversy over his assemblage, Back Seat Dodge ‘38 (1964). The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors called it "revolting, pornographic and blasphemous" and threatened to withhold financing for the museum unless the tableau was removed from view. A compromise was reached under which the sculpture's car door would remain closed and guarded, to be opened only on the request of a museum patron who was over 18, and only if no children were present in the gallery. The uproar led to more than 200 people lining up to see the work the day the show opened. Ever since, Back Seat Dodge ’38 has drawn crowds. LACMA did not formally acquire the work until 1986.
In 1966, Kienholz began to spend summers in Hope, Idaho
Hope, Idaho
Hope is a city in Bonner County, Idaho, United States. The population was 86 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hope is located at ....
, while still maintaining studio space in Los Angeles. Also around that time, Kienholz produced a series of Concept Tableaux. which consisted of framed text descriptions of artwork that did not yet exist. He would sell these works of early Conceptual Art
Conceptual art
Conceptual art is art in which the concept or idea involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic and material concerns. Many of the works, sometimes called installations, of the artist Sol LeWitt may be constructed by anyone simply by following a set of written instructions...
(though the term was not in widespread use at the time) for a modest sum, giving the buyer the right (upon payment of a larger fee) to have Kienholz actually construct the artwork.
Kienholz's assemblages of found object
Found object
A found object, in an artistic sense, indicates the use of an object which has not been designed for an artistic purpose, but which exists for another purpose already. Found objects may exist either as utilitarian, manufactured items, or things which occur in nature...
s—the detritus of modern existence, often including figures cast from life—are at times vulgar, brutal, and gruesome, confronting the viewer with questions about human existence and the inhumanity of twentieth-century society. Regarding found materials he said, in 1977, "I really begin to understand any society by going through its junk stores and flea markets. It is a form of education and historical orientation for me. I can see the results of ideas in what is thrown away by a culture."
Kienholz's work commented savagely on racism, aging, sexual stereotypes, poverty, greed, corruption, imperialism, patriotism, religion, alienation, and most of all, moral hypocrisy. Because of their satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
and antiestablishment
Antiestablishmentarianism
Antiestablishmentarianism is a policy or attitude that views a nation's power structure as corrupt, repressive, or exploitive....
tones, his works have often been linked to the funk art
Funk art
Funk art is an art movement inspired by popular culture that used an unlikely mixture of materials and techniques, including found objects. It was a reaction against the nonobjectivity of abstract expressionism. The movement’s name is derived from the musical term ‘funky’, describing the...
movement based in San Francisco in the 1960s.
Collaboration with Nancy Reddin
Nancy Reddin Kienholz
Nancy Reddin Kienholz is an American mixed media artist based in Hope, Idaho. She works in installation art, assemblage, photography, and lenticular printing. She is most famous for her collaborations with her husband and creative partner Edward Kienholz.-Early life:Reddin was born in Los...
. Collectively, they are referred to as "Kienholz." Their work has been widely acclaimed, particularly in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
In the early 1970s, Kienholz received a grant that permitted him to work in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. His most important works during this period were based on the Volksempfänger
Volksempfänger
The Volksempfänger was a range of radio receivers developed by engineer Otto Griessing at the request of Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels....
s (radio receiving apparatus from the National Socialist period in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
). In 1973 he was guest artist of the German Academic Exchange Service
German Academic Exchange Service
The German Academic Exchange Service or DAAD is the largest German support organisation in the field of international academic co-operation....
in Berlin.
In 1973, Kienholz and Reddin moved from Los Angeles to Hope
Hope, Idaho
Hope is a city in Bonner County, Idaho, United States. The population was 86 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hope is located at ....
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
and for the next twenty years they divided their time between Berlin and Idaho. In 1976 he received a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
. In 1977 he opened "The Faith and Charity in Hope Gallery" at their Idaho studio.
Kienholz died suddeny in Idaho on June 10, 1994, from a heart attack while hiking in the mountains near their home. He was buried in a Kienholz installation: Robert Hughes
Robert Hughes (critic)
Robert Studley Forrest Hughes, AO is an Australian-born art critic, writer and television documentary maker who has resided in New York since 1970.-Early life:...
wrote, "[H]is corpulent, embalmed body was wedged into the front seat of a brown 1940 Packard coupe. There was a dollar and a deck of cards in his pocket, a bottle of 1931 Chianti beside him and the ashes of his dog Smash in the back. He was set for the afterlife. To the whine of bagpipes, the Packard, steered by his widow Nancy Reddin Kienholz, rolled like a funeral barge into the big hole."
Exhibitions
Nancy Reddin Kienholz has continued to administer the joint artistic estate, organizing shows and exhibitions.Retrospectives of Kienholz's work have been infrequent, due to the difficulty and expense of assembling literally room-sized sculptures and installations from widely-dispersed collections around the world. Kienholz work has often been difficult to view, both because of its subject matter, and the logistics of displaying it. Relatively few of the major works had been on display in the US, the Kienholz's native land, though American museums have now started to feature their work more prominently, especially after a major retrospective (posthumous) exhibition in 1996 at the Whitney Museum of American Art
Whitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", is an art museum with a focus on 20th- and 21st-century American art. Located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street in New York City, the Whitney's permanent collection contains more than 18,000 works in a wide variety of...
.
The diverse and freely improvised materials and methods used in Kienholz works pose an unusual challenge to art conservators who try to preserve the artist's original intent and appearances. Treatment of Back Seat Dodge '38 for clothes moths presented an awkward situation, which was deftly addressed by the Getty Conservation Institute
Getty Conservation Institute
The Getty Conservation Institute , located in Los Angeles, California, is a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust. It is headquartered at the Getty Center but also has facilities at the Getty Villa, and commenced operation in 1985. The GCI is a private international research institution dedicated to...
and the J. Paul Getty Museum
J. Paul Getty Museum
The J. Paul Getty Museum, a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust, is an art museum. It has two locations, one at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, and one at the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, California...
in behalf of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is an art museum in Los Angeles, California. It is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles, adjacent to the George C. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits....
, owner of the artwork.
Further reading
— Largest catalog of Kienholz work published before Ed's death — Catalog of definitive retrospective (posthumous) exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American ArtWhitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", is an art museum with a focus on 20th- and 21st-century American art. Located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street in New York City, the Whitney's permanent collection contains more than 18,000 works in a wide variety of...
— Exhibition catalog of the last major installation assembled by Kienholz before Ed's death, at the National Gallery, London
National Gallery, London
The National Gallery is an art museum on Trafalgar Square, London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The gallery is an exempt charity, and a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media...
External links
- Solo and Group Exhibitions 1961-2010. LA Louver
- Kienholz artist profile page at LA Louver gallery
- Edward Kienholz. Back Seat Dodge '38. LACMA
- Edward Kienholz Images of objects (in English) Library Maxima Moshkova (in Russian)
- Willick, Damon. "Good morning, my name is Ed Kienholz...: Issues of the Artist's Self-Presentation." Illustrated essay. X-TRA Contemporary Art Quarterly
- McEntire, Frank. "In Life and Death, Ed Kienholz Makes Us Participate." The American Museum of Beat Art
- Ed & Nancy Reddin Kienholz at LA Louver Gallery LA Louver
- The Cool School Independent Lens — Interactive exploration of a Kienholz installation — Capsule review of the definitive catalog of Kienholz artwork
- Kienholz. The Signs of the Times. Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt Video: Kienholz Exhibition Frankfurt, Germany, October 22, 2011. - January 29, 2012.