Artists › Jan Fabre › Biography - Exhibitions
Biography of Jan Fabre
Jan Fabre is an artist, theatre-maker and author. He was born in Antwerp in 1958.
Education
In the late seventies he studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Art and the Municipal Institute of Decorative Arts and Crafts in Antwerp. His first works date from that period.
Jan Fabre makes installations, sculptures, drawings, films and performances. Over the years he has built up a sizeable body of work and has become internationally acclaimed.
Influences
His best-known works include Tivoli (1990, Mechelen), a mansion covered entirely in ballpoint drawing, The man who measures the clouds (1998), a bronze sculpture, versions of which can be seen at SMAK in Ghent, deSingel in Antwerp and in the sculpture garden at Catanzaro in Italy; and not least Heaven of Delight, a permanent work commissioned by Queen Paola of Belgium for the Mirror Hall at the Royal Palace in Brussels.
Jan Fabre's work in the plastic arts is coordinated by the Angelos organization. This covers all the projects, from museum and gallery exhibitions, public and private commissions, to the publishing of catalogues and special editions. Angelos also acts as the producer of Fabre's films and coordinates his performances. This makes it the point of contact for museums, galleries, freelance curators, publishers, collectors and journalists.
Over the years, Jan Fabre has built up a formidable oeuvre as a visual artist which has earned him extensive international renown.
He has been part of several important international exhibitions such as the Venice Biennial (1984, 1990 and 2003), Documenta in Kassel (1987 and 1992), the Sao Paolo Biennial (1991), the Lyon Biennial (2000), the Valencia Biennial (2001) and the Istanbul Biennial (1992 and 2001). Fabre is to date the only contemporary artist to be the subject of a solo exhibition at the Parisian Louvre (2008, Angel of Metamorphosis). From the Cellar to the Attic. From the Feet to the Brain at Kunsthaus Bregenz (2008) and From the Feet to the Brain in Venice venue Arsenale Novissimo (2009).
Exhibitions of Jan Fabre
Solo Exhibitions:
2009
- Project Mesrine, Galerie Bernd Kluser, Germany
- Is the brain the most sexy part of the body?, Galerie Kluser 2, Germany
- From the Feet to the Brain, Arsenale Novissimo, 53. Biennale di Venezia, Venice
2008
- De geleende tijd / Le temps emprunte, BOZAR, Brussels
- Jan Fabre au Louvre. L'ange de la metamorphose, Musee du Louvre, Aile Richelieu, Salles ecoles du Nord, Paris
- Is the Brain the Most Sexy Part of the Body?, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
- La route de la terre vers les etoiles n'est pas lisse, Halle Verriere, Meisenthal
- From the Cellar to the Attic-From the Feet to the Brain, Kunsthaus Bregenz, Bregenz
- Premio Pino Pascali XII ediz. 2008, Palazzo Pino Pascali, Polignano a Mare
- Umbraculum para Santiago de Chile, MAC - Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, Parque Forestal, Santiago de Chile
- Il Ragazzo con la luna e le stelle sulla testa, Piazza Plebiscito, Naples
2007
- Je crache sur ma tombe (modele de pensee), MAM - Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art, Vienna
- Die verliehene Zeit. Dessins pour l'oeuvre scenique de Jan Fabre, Museum der Moderne Rupertinum, Salzburg
- Projet Tivoli pour Salzburg, MAM - Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art, Salzburg
- Boites a images et modeles de pensee, MAM - Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art, Salzburg
- Who Shall Speak My Thoughts (of My Body), Gallery Alpha Delta, Athens
- The Brains of My Mother and My Father / The Most Sexy Part of the Body (Brain Drawings and Models), Shugoarts, Tokyo
- Les messagers de la mort decapites, Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris
- Antropologie d'une planete, GAMeC - Galleria d'Arte moderna e contemporanea, Bergamo / Palazzo Benzon, 52.
- Biennale di Venezia, Venice
2006
- Le Temps emprunte. Drawings for the Stage Works by Jan Fabre, Galerie beaumontpublic, Luxembourg
- Kijkdozen en Denkmodellen 1977-2004, Vlaams Parlement, Lokettenzaal, Brussels
- Homo Faber, MuHKA - Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen, KMSKA - Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp, Stadsbibliotheek Antwerp, Galerij Rode Zeven and Galerij Rossaert, Antwerp
- Lancelot, Magazzino d'Arte Moderna, Rome
- Kijkdozen en Denkmodellen, Galerie Seghers, Ostend
- L'home que escriu sobre l'aigua, Sala d'Exposicions de la Rambla, Girona
- Je me vide de moi-meme, Galerie Guy Bartschi, Geneva
- Jan Fabre: Landscapes and Turtles, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
- An umbraculum for Dubrovnik, Galerija Umjetnicka, Dubrovnik
- Turtles, Carpets, Landscapes, Galerie Artist, Istanbul
2005
- Mis gotas de sangre, mis huellas de sangre, Galeria Espacio Minimo, Madrid
2004
- Umbraculum, DASA - Galerie der Deutschen Arbeitsschutz Ausstellung, Dortmund
- Drawing-Photography-Drawing 1978-2004, Galerie beaumontpublic, Luxembourg
- Messengers of the Death, MAM - Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art, Salzburg
- Gaude succurrere vitae (Rejouissez-vous de venir au secours de la vie), Musee d'Art Contemporain, Lyon
- Sanguis / Mantis, MAM - Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art, Vienna
- The Problem, Alpha Delta Gallery, Athens
2003
- Umbraculum, Kunstnernes Hus, Oslo
- Sanguis / Mantis, Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris
- Gaude succurrere vitae (Rallegratevi di soccorrere la vita), GAMEC - Galleria d'Arte moderna e contemporanea, Bergamo
- Gaude succurrere vitae (Alegrate de socorrer la vida), Fundacio Joan Miro, Barcelona
- L'homme qui donne du feu. Un choix dans l'oeuvre sculpturale de Jan Fabre 1977-2003, Fondation Claudine et Jean-Marc Salomon, Alex
- A la recherche d'Utopia. Sculptures / installations 1977-2003, MAMAC - Musee d'Art moderne et d'Art contemporain, Nice
2002
- Gaude succurrere vitae (Verheug u ter hulp te komen aan het leven), S.M.A.K. - Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Ghent
- The Great Confinement, Galerie Academia and Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art, Salzburg
2001
- Swords, Skulls and Crosses, Galeria Espacio Minimo, Madrid Umbraculum.
- Een plaats in de schaduw waar gedacht en gewerkt wordt, ver van het gangbare leven, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
- Tekeningen Ilad of the BIC-Art 1980, Galerie Elisabeth Kaufmann, Zurich
- Angel and Warrior. Strategy and Tactics, MIMOCA - Marugame Genichiro-Inokuma Museum of Contemporary Art, Kagawa
- Memento Mori, Galerie beaumontpublic, Luxembourg
- Umbraculum. Un lieu ombrage hors du monde pour penser et travailler, Chapelle Saint-Charles, Avignon Neue Arbeiten, Galerie Bernd Kluser, Munich
- Progetto Roma 2001, Umbraculum. Un posto ombreggiato dove pensare e lavorare lontano della vita quotidiana, Galleria Comunale d'Arte
- Moderna e Contemporanea, Rome; L'uomo che misura le nuvole - l'uomo dalle gambe di carne, Academia Belgica, Rome
2000
- Storage Room of a Warrior, Alpha Delta Gallery, Athens
- A Consilience, Natural History Museum, London
- Jan Fabre & Ilya Kabakov. Sustret. Een ontmoeting / Bctpe4a, Muzej Suvremene Umjetnosti, Zagreb
- Annonce au monde exterieur, Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris
1999
- Jan Fabre, Muzeum Sztuki Nowoczesnej w Warszawie, Warsaw
- Battlefields & Beekeepers, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
- Body Liquids &... Sleep, sleep and sleep little animals..., Sprengel Museum, Hanover
- Passage, Cantieri culturali allo Zisa, Palermo
- Engel und Krieger. Strategien und Taktiken, Kunsthalle zu Kiel, Kiel
- Me Dreaming, Chateau d'Oiron
1998
- Jan Fabre & Ilya Kabakov: Een ontmoeting / Vstrecha / A meeting, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
- Jan Fabre. Passage, Haggerty Museum of Art, Milwaukee
- A cidade e as estralas. Parte 3. Jan Fabre. Atlas of battles, strategies and tactics, Galeria Luis Serpa, Lisbon
- Jan Fabre, Satani Gallery, Tokyo
- Annonce au monde exterieur, Galerie beaumontpublic, Luxembourg
1997
- Passage / Prolaz, Muzej Suvremene Umjetnosti, Zagreb
- The Joker, Galleria Massimo Minini, Brescia
- The Lime Twig Man, Arnolfini, Bristol
- Passage, MuHKA - Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen, Antwerp
- Inneres / außeres Skelett. Skulpturen und Zeichnungen, Galerie Bernd Kluser, Munich
- Jan Fabre, Rob Scholte, Edward Lipski. New Works (3 solo's), Galerie Ronny Van de Velde, Antwerp
1996
- Skeleton + Skin, Satani Gallery, Tokyo
- Passage, Ludwig Muzeum, Budapest
1995
- Dye den nest weet Dye weeten. Dyen roft dy heeten. Vier nieuwe sculpturen, De Vleeshal, Middelburg
- De Lijmstokman, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam
- Der Leimrutenmann, Galerie der Stadt Stuttgart, Stuttgart
1994
- Jan Fabre. The Grave of the Unknown Computer, Galerie beaumontpublic, Luxembourg
- Questa pazzia e fantastica, Museo Pecci, Prato
- Mauer der aufsteigenden Engel. Skulpturen und Zeichnungen, Galerie Bernd Kluser, Munich
- Silenzio nella tempesta..., Galleria Massimo Minini, Brescia
1993
- Tekeningen, sculpturen, tekeningen, Galerie Ronny Van de Velde, Antwerp
1992
- Zeichnungen - Objekte - Zeichnungen, Kunstverein Hannover, Hanover
- Jan Fabre: Een portret, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
1991
- Zwei Objekten, Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main
1990
- Tivoli, Galerie Ronny Van de Velde, Antwerp
- Das Gerausch, Kunsthalle Basel, Basel
- Som, Centro de Arte Moderna, Lisbon
- Antichambres / Affinites selectives VI. Jan Fabre / Christian Boltanski, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels
1989
- Insecten en Ruimte, Museum Overholland, Amsterdam
- Een skulptuur / vijf tekeningen, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
- Jan Fabre, Jack Tilton Gallery, New York
1988
- Der blaue Raum, Kunstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin
- He wat een plezierige zottigheid!, Ronny Van de Velde, Antwerp
- Jan Fabre: Modellen 1977-1985, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
1985
- Tekeningen, Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst, Ghent
- The Forgery of the Secret Feast, New Math Gallery, New York
1984
- Vrienden..., Provinciaal Museum, Hasselt
- Jan Fabre in Belgisch Paviljoen, Belgian Pavillon, Giardini della Biennale, 41. Biennale di Venezia, Venice
1981
- BIC-Art Room, Salon Odessa, Leiden
1980
- Mond-Oog-Oor Arts, Galerie Workshop, Antwerp
1979
- Wetskamer, Galerie Workshop, Antwerp
- Bic-Dweilen en Wetspotten, Jordaenshuis, Antwerp
Group Exhibitions:
2009
- Something Else!!!, MAN_Museo d'Arte Provincia di Nuoro, Italy
- Indian Caps. De keuze van Jan Fabre, Indian Caps vzw, Antwerp
- Goldfish Suddenly Dead, Project Room Extra City, Antwerp
- Jeugdzonde. Over opus een en opus min een, LLS 387 Ruimte voor Actuele Kunst, Antwerp
- Glass stress, Instituto Veneto di Scienze Lettere ed Arti, Venice
2008
- Der eigene Weg. Doing it my way. Perspektiven Belgischer Kunst. Perspectives on Belgian Art, MKM - Museum
- Kuppersmuhle fur moderne Kunst, Duisburg
- Anatomie des Vanites, Musee de la Maison d'Erasme, Anderlecht
- NeoFutur - Vers de nouveaux imaginaires, Les Abattoirs, Toulouse
- Jan Fabre op Wereldexpo in Zaragoza / Belgian Pavillion, Zaragoza
- Update, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
- Voyage sentimental, Mediations Biennale, Poznan
- Resonances medievales, Couvent des Cordeliers, Saint-Nizier-sous-Charlieu
- II Bienal de Arte Contemporaneo, Madrid
- Otras Floras, Galeria Nara Roesler, Sao Paulo
- Reflections on light, Galerie Bernd Kluser - Galerie Kluser 2, Munich
- Corpus Delicti, Justitiepaleis, Brussels
- I have nothing to say and I am saying it, Platform Seoul, Korea
- Futurotextiel 08, Hall NMBS, Kortrijk
- Collectiepresentatie, S.M.A.K. - Stedelijk Museum voor Actuelle Kunst, Ghent
- Struggle for life. Evolution and Extinction in the Anthropocene, ERES-Stiftung, Munich
- Now Jump!, Nam June Paik Festival, Seoul
- Collectie XXIII, MuHKA - Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen, Antwerp
- Het spel van de waanzin. Over gekte in film en theater, Museum Dr. Guislain, Ghent
- Dit is onze aarde! (It's our Earth!), Tour & Taxis, Brussels
2007
- Force Inconnue, Transfo, Zwevegem
- I Am As You Will Be / The Skeleton in Art, Cheim & Read, New York
- Cadeau d'amis/ Een homage aan Jan Hoet, ICCA (International Centre for Contemporary Art), Diepenbeek
- Ongekende kracht, Transfo, Zwevegem
- Die Schone und das Ungeheuer. Geschichten ungewohnlicher Liebespaare, Museum Residenzgalerie, Salzburg
- ARCO 07, Madrid
- De gustibus... Manger dans l'art contemporain, Broelmuseum, Broelkaai & ING, Kortrijk
- Collective one, Galerie Guy Bartschi, Geneva
- Bloedmooi. Onze dubieuze relatie met het dier, Historisch Museum Rotterdam / Schielandshuis, Rotterdam
- Artempo, Where Time Becomes Art, Palazzo Fortuny, Venice
- VIT(A)RTI, Verbeke Foundation, Kemzeke
- Skin of / in Contemporary Art, The National Museum of Art, Osaka
2006
- 2006 Beaufort. Triennale voor hedendaagse kunst aan zee, Belgian coast
- Absolumental, Les Abattoirs, Toulouse
- Intramoenia-Extrart, Castelli di Puglia (Castelli della Daunia), Monte Sant'Angelo
- Zoo, La Centrale Electrique / European Centre for Contemporary Art, Brussels
- The Sublime is Now! (Das Erhabene in der zeitgenossischen Kunst), Museum Franz Gertsch, Burgdorf, Bern
2005
- Visionary Belgium, Paleis voor Schone Kunsten - Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels
- Galleria in Galleria, Metropolitana, Milan
- Intersezioni, Parco Archeologico della Roccelletta, Catanzaro
- Slow Art. Neue Akzente aus Flandern und den Niederlanden, museum kunst palast, Dusseldorf
- When Humour Becomes Painful, Migros Museum, Zurich
- Memoire et transmission, MAMAC - Musee d'Art moderne et d'Art contemporain, Liege
- Barrocos i neobarracos / El infierno de lo bello, Domus Artium, Salamanca
- Accumulazioni, Palazzo Lantieri, Gorizia
- War is over / 1945-2005. La Liberta dell'Arte da Picasso a Warhol a Cattelan, GAMEC - Galleria d'Arte moderna e contemporanea, Bergamo
- La peau est ce qu'il y a de plus profond, Musee des Beaux-Arts de Valenciennes, Valenciennes
- Sanguis / Mantis Landscape (Battlefield), Musee d'Art Moderne, Saint-Etienne
- Principato di Monaco: Idea per un museo, Palazzo Ruspoli, Fondazione Memmo, Rome
- Jan Fabre. Il rifugio (per la tomba del computer sconosciuto), Casa La Marrana in Montemarcello, Ameglia
- The Giving Person. Il dono dell'artista, Palazzo delle Arti Napoli, Naples
2004
- Normal Life, Artandgallery, Milan
- Eclips. 25 jaar Deweer Art Gallery, Transfo, Zwevegem
- Horizont(e). Vinte Anos Galeria Luis Serpa Projects 1984-2004, Cordoaria Nacional, Lisbon
- Vidas imaginaries, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon
2003
- 2003 Beaufort. Triennale voor hedendaagse kunst aan zee, Belgian coast
- Outlook, Athens
- Le Opere e i giorni 2003, Certosa di San Lorenzo, Padula
2001
- Sous les ponts, le long de la riviere..., Les vallees de la Petrusse et de l'Alzette / Fort Thungen, Luxembourg
- 1st Biennial of Valencia. The Body and Sin, Convento del Carmen, Valencia
- Collections d'artistes, Collection Lambert, Avignon
- 7th International Istanbul Biennial. Egofugal / Egokac, Istanbul
2000
- 5eme Biennale d'Art contemporain de Lyon. Partage d'exotismes, Halle Tony Garnier, Lyon
- La Beaute: Nature a l'oeuvre, Clos de Trams, Espace Jeanne-Laurent and Palais des Papes, Avignon
- 7 Hugel - Bilder und Zeichen des 21. Jahrhunderts, Martin Gropius-Bau, Berlin
- Lost Paradise Lost. Kunst und sakraler Raum, World EXPO 2000, Hanover
- Sonsbeek 9: LocusFocus, Arnhem
1998
- Skin, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
1997
- La pittura fiamminga e olandese, Palazzo Grassi, Venice
- Art/Fashion (Biennale di Firenze '96), Guggenheim Museum SoHo, New York
1995
- Watou '95. Dichters rond de beeldende kunstenaar Jan Fabre, 3 x 7 Kamers, 3 x 7 Gedichten, Watou
- Ripple Across the Water '95, Watari-um/Tadashi Kawamata Museum, Tokyo
- Permanentie: Het fotografische beeld in de kunst, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
1993
- Azur, Fondation Cartier, Jouy-en-Josas
1992
- Mito Annual '93. Another World, Art Tower Mito Contemporary Art Gallery, Tokyo
- Documenta IX, Kassel
- Transform. BildObjektSkulptur im 20. Jahrhundert, Kunstmuseum Basel and Kunsthalle Basel
- Der gefrorene Leopard, Galerie Bernd Kluser, Munich
- Third International Istanbul Biennial, The Greater Istanbul Municipality Nejat F. Eczacibasi Art Museum, Istanbul
1991
- Wanderlieder, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam
- Metropolis. International Art Exhibition Berlin 1991, Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin
- Irony by Vision, Watari-um Gallery, The Watari Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo 21a Bienal Internacional de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo
1990
- Artisti (della Fiandra), Palazzo Sagredo, 44. Biennale di Venezia, Venice
1987
- Uit het oude Europe / From the Europe of Old, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam
- Microscopia, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
1989
- Open Mind (Gesloten circuits), Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst, Ghent
1988
- Signaturen. Rond honderd tekeningen van Beuys en Wols, Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst, Ghent
1985
- Aanwinsten, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam
- Dialogo. Exhibition-Dialogue on Contemporary Art in Europe / Exposicao-Dialogo sobre a arte contemporanea na Europa, Fundacao Calouste
- Gulbenkian, Centro de Arte Moderna, Lisbon
- Ouverture, Deweer Art Gallery, Otegem
1984
- 41e Biennale di Venezia, Giardini della Biennale, Belgian Pavillon, Venice
1979
- Arte fiamminga contemporanea, Palazzo Rucellai, Florence
