While the work of Calvin Marcus (b. 1988, San Francisco) is not concerned in any overt way with his own biography, he is interested in artistic persona as it takes shape through carefully directed formal decisions and conceptual structures. The mixed-media paintings, sculptures, and drawings that result are notable for their iconic forms (dead soldiers, stylized self-portraits with devilish tongues, ceramic fish), meticulous attention to craft, and surreal humor, evincing a playfulness born from variance among serial forms. Marcus draws attention to the pillars that support artistic endeavor as a whole, as well as the basic questions that often go unanswered when any artist chooses to display their output in a public setting. This has led him to produce works that also address the physical and institutional envelopes in which art is experienced.
Calvin Marcus has been the subject of solo exhibitions at K11 Musea, Hong Kong (2019); The Power Station, Dallas (2017); Peep-Hole, Milan (2015); and Public Fiction, Los Angeles (2014). Recent group exhibitions include New Works in the Collection – From Abramovic to Warhol, Louisiana Museum of Art, Humlebæk, Denmark (2021–2022); Just Connect, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (2020); Whitney Biennial 2019, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Trick Brain, Aïshti Foundation, Beirut (2017); and High Anxiety: New Acquisitions, Rubell Family Collection, Miami (2016), among others. His work is in the permanent collections of the Astrup Fearnley Museet, Oslo, Norway; Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris; K11 Art Foundation, Hong Kong; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; and Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. Marcus lives and works in Los Angeles.
Calvin Marcus
Untitled (Begonia), 2021
watercolor, oil, and emulsified gesso on linen/canvas blend
45 1/2 x 60 1/4 x 1 inches
(115.6 x 153 x 2.5 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Jet, 2019
watercolor, oil, vinyl, and emulsified gesso on linen/canvas blend
79 1/8 x 101 1/2 x 1 1/8 inches
(201 x 257.8 x 2.9 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Asparagus 7 a.m., 2019
chromogenic print
7 x 8 1/8 inches
(17.8 x 20.6 cm)
framed:
15 3/4 x 17 1/2 x 1 1/4 inches
(40 x 44.5 x 3.2 cm)
Edition of 8, with 2 AP
Calvin Marcus
Ghost of Younger Self, 2019
watercolor and vinyl on linen
101 5/8 x 79 inches
(258.1 x 200.7 cm)
Calvin Marcus
blue devil, 2018
Cel-Vinyl, ceramic, and Flashe on aluminum panel in artist's frame
36 1/2 x 24 1/2 x 5 inches
(92.7 x 62.2 x 12.7 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Automatic Drawing (untitled), 2017
oil crayon and Flashe on gessoed linen
48 x 96 x 1 1/2 inches
(121.9 x 243.8 x 3.8 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Dead Soldier, 2017
oil stick, Cel-vinyl, liquid watercolor, and emulsified gesso on linen/canvas blend
101 1/2 x 79 x 1 inches
(257.8 x 200.7 x 2.5 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Untitled Structure #7, 2017
bronze and shell residue
21 x 25 1/2 x 12 inches
(53.3 x 64.8 x 30.5 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Fish in Dish, 2016
glazed ceramic
2 3/4 x 9 1/4 x 7 inches
(7 x 23.5 x 17.8 cm)
Calvin Marcus
me with tongue, 2016
oil stick, Cel-vinyl, liquid water color, and emulsified gesso on linen/canvas blend
84 x 60 x 1 1/2 inches
(213.4 x 152.4 x 3.8 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Martini Shirt (Sloan's Dry Cleaners and Laundry: "Clean and Fresh"), 2015
screen printing ink, sewn linen, wooden buttons, wire hanger, plastic, safety pins, paper tags
41 x 21 x 1 inches
(104.1 x 53.3 x 2.5 cm)
Calvin Marcus
Green Calvin, 2015
Cel-Vinyl on high fired ceramic and Honeycombed aluminum panel in artist's frame
48 1/2 x 96 1/2 x 5 inches
(123.2 x 245.1 x 12.7 cm)