For the past two decades, Jonathan Hammer has investigated the concept of narrative through a unique practice that includes such traditional techniques as etching, Japanese screen-making, 16th-century marquetry and the ancient art of bookbinding.
The Nasher’s ongoing speaker series features conversations and lectures on the ever-expanding definition of sculpture and the minds behind some of the world’s most innovative artwork, architecture, and design.
Jonathan Hammer is as known for his revisionist Dada theories as he is for his brilliant, epic creations heavy with symbolism. Using a vocabulary of clowns, old toys and antiquated landscapes, Hammer's work embodies the duality of themes including victim and victimizer, power and powerlessness, innocence and malevolence. Originally from Chicago, Hammer lived in California after receiving a degree in bookbinding from the London College of Bookbinding. His work has been shown in galleries and museums in New York, California and throughout Europe and is in major private and public collections including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Berkeley Museum of Art and New York Public Library. In 2002, Hammer published a new, illustrated translation of Hugo Ball’s visionary novella Tenderenda the Fantast along with his own critical writing on Dadaism in Ball and Hammer (Yale University Press). He currently lives and works in Barcelona, Spain.
Sponsors
Support for the 360 series is underwritten in part by Sylvia Hougland, in honor of her husband, Curtis Hougland.
Supported in part by: City of Dallas, Office of Cultural Affairs
Media Partner: Glasstire