Michael Ashkin
Encyclopedia
Michael Ashkin is an American artist who makes sculptures, videos, photographs and installations depicting marginalized, desolate landscapes.http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D01E0DF1E3AF935A35757C0A961958260 He is best known for his use of miniature scale and modest materials.http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E03E0DC1138F933A25755C0A9639C8B63
Ashkin also authored Garden State, a book which compares the New Jersey Meadowlands
to a formal garden. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9403E4DE1F30F936A15751C0A9669C8B63 He is a contributing author to (Untitled) Experience of Place. http://www.andrearosengallery.com/exhibitions/2002_11_michael-ashkin/
Ashkin was born in Morristown, New Jersey
, and received an M.A. in Middle East Languages and Cultures from Columbia University
. Before becoming an artist, he taught Arabic and worked as a computer programmer for investment banks. http://www.lannan.org/lf/res/past/P00/204/ Ashkin's work was included in Documenta
11 in 2002, and in the 1997 Whitney Biennial
. He is currently the Director of Graduate Studies of Art at Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning
as well as a 2009 Guggenheim Fellow.
Ashkin also authored Garden State, a book which compares the New Jersey Meadowlands
New Jersey Meadowlands
New Jersey Meadowlands, also known as the Hackensack Meadowlands after the primary river flowing through it, is a general name for the large ecosystem of wetlands in northeast New Jersey in the United States. The Meadowlands are known for being the site of large landfills and decades of...
to a formal garden. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9403E4DE1F30F936A15751C0A9669C8B63 He is a contributing author to (Untitled) Experience of Place. http://www.andrearosengallery.com/exhibitions/2002_11_michael-ashkin/
Ashkin was born in Morristown, New Jersey
Morristown, New Jersey
Morristown is a town in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town population was 18,411. It is the county seat of Morris County. Morristown became characterized as "the military capital of the American Revolution" because of its strategic role in the...
, and received an M.A. in Middle East Languages and Cultures from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. Before becoming an artist, he taught Arabic and worked as a computer programmer for investment banks. http://www.lannan.org/lf/res/past/P00/204/ Ashkin's work was included in 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...
11 in 2002, and in the 1997 Whitney Biennial
Whitney Biennial
The Whitney Biennial is a biennale exhibition of contemporary American art, typically by young and lesser known artists, on display at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City, USA. The event began as an annual exhibition in 1932, the first biennial was in 1973...
. He is currently the Director of Graduate Studies of Art at Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning
Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning
The College of Architecture, Art, and Planning at Cornell University was established in 1871 as the School of Architecture with the hiring of Charles Babcock as the first Professor creating the first four-year course of study in architecture in the United States...
as well as a 2009 Guggenheim Fellow.