About Grant Wiggins
Résumé
Born in 1973, in Cleveland, Ohio
Resides in Tempe, Arizona
Education
2000 Arizona State University; Tempe, Arizona; MBA
1996 Northwestern University; Evanston, Illinois; MA, English
1995 Kenyon College; Gambier, Ohio; BA, English
Solo Exhibitions
2006
- Maximal Minimal ; .anti_space; Phoenix,
Arizona (1 - 23 Dec 2006)
2001
- Treasures from the Xerxes Nebula; reZurrection Gallery; Tempe,
Arizona (3 Aug - 1 Sep 2001)
- Irrational Exuberance; Aosis/Freedom; Tempe, Arizona (Feb - Mar 2001)
Group Exhibitions (*Indicates catalogue published)
2007
- Think Small 4; ArtSpace Gallery; Richmond, Virginia (2 Nov - 22 Dec 2007)
- Global Warming: Artists Speak. Orange County Center for Contemporary Art (1 Sep - 29 Sep 2007)*
- 2007 Arizona Biennial. Tucson Museum of Art; Tucson, Arizona (19 May - 19 Aug 2007)
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2005
- Think Small 3; ArtSpace Gallery; Richmond, Virginia (4 Nov - 17 Dec 2005)
- Five-Year Retrospective; reZurrection Gallery; Tempe, Arizona (13 Aug - 2 Sep 2005)
- 2005 Arizona Biennial; Tucson Museum of Art; Tucson, Arizona (13 May - 21 Aug 2005)
- Art One Gallery; Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona (Summer 2005)
- Furniture Art Designers Showcase; monOrchid; Phoenix, Arizona (1 Apr - 30 Apr 2005)
2004
- Fresh Paint (with Oliver Hibert, Mark Freedman, Chris Ballantyne, Mario Correa, and Sush Machida Gaikotsu); Phoenix Art Museum (1 Nov. 2003 - 15 Mar 2004)*
- Mass Surrealism (with Ralph Brekan and James B. Hunt); Thought Crime; Phoenix, Arizona (Jan 2004)
2003
- Cannibal Flower Underground Art Show; Los Angeles (various sites), 2003
- Popped Out (with Oliver Hibert and Mark Freedman); monOrchid; Phoenix, Arizona (16 May - 27 Jul 2003)
- 2003 Arizona Biennial; Tucson Museum of Art; Tucson, Arizona (May - Aug. 2003)*
2002
- Modes of Variance (with Oliver Hibert); Kontrive; Tempe, Arizona (Sep - Oct 2002)
2001
- The State of America; reZurrection Gallery; Tempe, Arizona (Dec 2001)
Other Projects
Phoenix Art Museum Children's Gallery: 35-foot wall mural and accompanying graphics (2004-05 school year)
Maricopa Community Colleges: Posters for "Popular Culture" lecture series (2004-05 and 2005-06 school years)
Bibliography
2007
- Patafio, Melissa. "Biennial Trifecta." 944 (Phoenix, Arizona). June 2007. p. 62
2006
- Barzso, Tain. "It's the Arts." The Noise (Flagstaff, Arizona). Mar 2006. p. 12
- Barzso, -----. "It's the Arts." The Noise. Jan 2006. Cover and pp. 12-3
- Jhaveri, Keri and Brian McHugh (Producers). January 22, 2006. Sunday Artist Series. Phoenix, Arizona: KNXV-TV (ABC 15).
2004
- Roberts, Brady, M. Fresh Paint. Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Catalogue. Phoenix Art Museum, 2004
2003
- Phoenix New Times. "Who's Cool." December 12, 2003
- Villani, John Carlos. "Downtown Artists Get Taste of the Big Time," The Arizona Republic, November 16, 2003, pp. E1, E5
- Buchanan, Susy. "Fresh Paint: Art Junkies," Phoenix New Times, November 4, 2003, p. 51. Story is online.
- Scott, Miriam A. "The TRA25Capsule: Popped Art," Switch, November 2003, pp. 8-13
- Hiett, Christina S. "Kamping in Arizona," Shade, June 2003, pp. 36-8
- Tucson Museum of Art. Arizona Biennial '03, 2003
- Parker, Oriana. "The Downtown Phoenix Art Scene: Poised for Greatness," The Arizona Republic, May 25, 2003, AZ Style p. 5
- McIntyre, Ernest. "New Exhibit Proves that Pop Art Didn't Die with Warhol," The Arizona Republic, May 16, 2003
- Koch, Jill. "Pop Goes the Easel," Phoenix New Times. May 14, 2003, p. 41
- Freedman, Mark, Oliver Hibert, and Grant Wiggins. "In Their Own Words." Shade, April 2003, pp. 43-4
- "Mass Market: Pop Imagery from a New Generation," Metro, April 2003, p. 90
2002
- Rose, Joshua. "Modes of Variance: Paintings by Oliver Hibert and Grant Wiggins," Shade, October 2002, pp. 42-3
2001
- Burnett, Roberta. "Wiggins' Show Turns Ads into Art," The Arizona Republic, August 17, 2001
- Villani, -----. "Enigmatic Art Takes You on Road Trip through Desert," The Arizona Republic, August 11, 2003, p. E3
- Jones, Mark. "Lampooning Logos," Scottsdale Tribune and East Valley Tribune, August 3, 2001, D1
- Provencio, Claudia. "A Whole New World," The Arizona Republic, February 21, 2001, The Rep, p. 30
Artist Statement
I aim to build upon the tradition of minimalist painting of the late 1950s through mid-1970s—from American modern artists such as Barnett Newman and Ellsworth Kelly to Jo Baer and Frederick Hammersley—by working with eye-catching color schemes found in contemporary graphic design.
In a way, my paintings are distillations of things we see every day, such as product packaging and semi-truck graphics. I’m inspired by the seemingly infinite combination of shapes and colors, and I very much enjoy mashing up corporate logos. However, my work offers no representational content, which might help to explain my paintings’ names. They are what you see them as being.
But why minimalism? Decades ago, minimalism was a turning of the tide away from Abstract Expressionism. For me, minimalism is about something else. It’s a visual antidote to overconsumption—e.g., the din of advertising, Christmas decorations reaching retail shelves around Labor Day, and cars that get 12 miles per gallon. The question of how to conserve natural resources is coursing through our zeitgeist. I’m exploring ways of saying and doing more with less, seeing beauty in simplicity more than ever.
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