Anya Gallaccio

Broadcasts

Broadcasts: Mutter, Matter, Mother

Organized by Naz Cuguoglu

April 2021

Biography

Anya Gallaccio (b. 1963, Paisley, Scotland) studied at Kingston Polytechnic and Goldsmiths College at the University of London. Recognized internationally for her work with natural materials to create site-specific installations, Gallaccio has consistently impacted notions of traditional sculpture. She engages organic substances such as trees, grass, flowers, fruit, and ice, enhancing their pure essence through sculptural form. Gallaccio’s sculptures are not created to capture one moment, instead she invites the viewer to witness the fluidity and impermanence of nature. The delicate and illusory appearance of her work encourages us to embrace the state and process of entropy, as the outcome of Gallaccio’s sculptures remains unforeseen, often even to the artist herself. She suggests true preservation only really occurs in our memory. Her work offers all the various stages of existence by emulating the renewal and degeneration of life. Yet, we are not meant to reminisce, but rather see beginnings and endings fuse together into a cycle that is forever changing and becoming.

Gallaccio’s work has been the subject of international solo exhibitions including Lindisfarne Castle, Holy Island, Northumberland, UK (2018); Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, CA (2015); Artpace, San Antonio, TX (2013); Jupiter Artland, Edinburgh, Scotland (2012); Camden Arts Center, London, UK (2008); Sculpture Center, Queens, NY (2006); Palazzo delle Papesse Centro Arte Contemporanea, Siena, Italy (2005); Tate London, UK (2003); Tate Britain, London, UK (2002); Serpentine Gallery Lawn, London, UK (1997); and the ICA London, UK (1992). Her work is represented in the permanent collections of numerous international institutions including Arts Council of England, London, UK; British Council Collection, London, UK; Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Australia; Paisley Museum and Art Galleries, Paisley, Scotland; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, WA; South London Gallery, London, UK; Tate Britain, London, UK; and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK, among many others. In 2003 she was nominated for the Turner Prize of the Tate Britain, London, UK. She is a professor in the Department of Visual Arts at the University of California, San Diego, CA.

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