John Baldessari
October 2, 2009
Accordionist (with Crowd)
, 1994
(From Series: A French Horn Player, A Square Blue Moon and Other Subjects)
25-color lithograph/serigraph
Published: Gemini G.E.L
Edition Printing: Jennifer Azzarone, Stanley Baden, James Reid, Stephanie Wagner
Purchased: Acquisition Funds, 2009
California born, raised, and educated, John Baldessari has become one the world’s most recognized contemporary artists. Born in National City, Baldessari began his undergraduate work at San Diego State College and continued his graduate work at Otis Art Institute and other institutions such as the Chouinard Art Institute and the University of California at Berkeley. In more than 200 solo exhibitions and 900 group exhibitions, Baldessari’s work has ranged from video, films, lithographs and prints.
Chapman University added John Baldessari’s Accordionist (With Crowd) to their growing Permanent Collection in 2009. Working in his iconic style, this piece is a fine example of Baldessari’s process of distancing the viewer from crucial information and disrupting common images with geometric fields of color. In 2009, Baldessari won the prestigious Golden Lion Lifetime Achievement award at the 53rd International Venice Biennale, Italy. He taught at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia for 18 years and the University of California Los Angeles from 1996-2007. John Baldessari still lives and continues his work in Southern California and stands as one of the most important figures in American and international contemporary art.
For more information on artist, visit the John Baldessari Website
