From installation to painting, performance to photography, the work of Jonathan
Monk does not conform to one instantly recognisable visual style. Personal
memories and anecdotal references to art history form a network of cross
references which challenge the notions of genius and purity in modern art. The
diversity of allusion playfully demystifies the creative process and suggests
alternative models for how art and the role of the artist can be interpreted.
When drawing upon episodes in the history of modern art, Monk comments
upon the myths of innovation and originality and undermines the idea of artistic
authority. In the None of the buildings on Sunset Strip we see the artist reenacting
Ed Ruscha’s walk down that street in 36 photographs. Monk subverts the
journey, turning his attention to side roads, and makes a humorous comment
upon the self referential imagination of modern art. Monk disputes the concept
of artistic genius by placing fine art in the context of the ordinary.
Read moreIn Between my mother and my sister the journey between his mother’s and sister’s
houses is documented in 48 photographs together with the Automobile
Association’s instructions describing the simplest route, creating a candid
comparison between everyday life and conceptual art.
Right Time/Wrong Place, four monochrome paintings made by Monk in his studio
are shown together with four photographs taken by his friends at various
locations at exactly the same time as the paintings were executed. The
photographs are presented as reference and documentation for the act of
painting, defying the ideology of the abstract monochrome which traditionally
resists all forms of literary and anecdotal association. The distinction between the
real and the fake is questioned. Do we believe that the photographs were taken
at the same time as the paintings were made? Does it have any real
significance? The often simultaneously heroic and banal circumstances of artistic
creation are highlighted, and the relevance of myth and reality confused.
The slide show In Search for Gregory Peck adds an autobiographical dimension to
his engagement with the past. The images were taken by his father in 1950’s
America and show that there is also a sentimental sensibility towards what once
was.
Presently based in Los Angeles, Jonathan Monk has exhibited extensively in
Europe and America after graduating from Glasgow School of Art in 1991.
Currently also showing in Bern this is his first solo exhibition at Lisson Gallery.
