.

Artists Monument – by Tony Tasset

Includes names of 392,485 artists on a 80 feet long and 8 feet high monument

Unveiled: February 16, 2106

Location: Grant Park / Michigan Ave. and 9th Street

Public Installation presented through a Special Collaboration Between the Chicago Park District [CPD], the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events [DCASE] and Kavi Gupta.

.

.

 

.

The monument is eighty feet long and eight feet high with names of 392,485 artists, ranging from Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol to emerging artists with a single exhibition to their credit. Names are carved into colorful acrylic panels on two shipping containers, a nod to the industrial materials of major Minimalist works. Artists are listed alphabetically instead of by popularity in a democratic salutation to centuries of artistic production. The Artists Monument debuted at the 2014 Whitney Biennial.

“It’s an incredible feeling to see this particular piece on display in my home town of Chicago. This celebratory piece is a love letter to artists, honoring those that are well-known and the vast majority that virtually no one has ever heard of. I know an artist who has only been in one group exhibition 15 years ago at a university gallery and he’s on the list.”
– Tony Tasset.

“We couldn’t think of a better artwork to be shared with the Chicago community. Its message is overwhelmingly generous and Tony Tasset has been an irreplaceable figure in the Chicago art world.”
– Kavi Gupta.

“It gives us great pleasure to be able to showcase this beautiful art in Grant Park, for all to see. The Chicago Park District’s public art installations are part of Mayor Emanuel’s efforts to bring public art directly to Chicago neighborhoods and fits into his citywide vision for art and culture.”
– Michael P. Kelly, General Superintendent and CEO of the Chicago Park District [CPD].

 

.

 

 

.

Why is it at an angle and not parallel to the Michigan Avenue?
So that at any point of time, activities taking place behind the monument,  
can be easily monitored from the very busy Michigan Avenue.
Its kind of a security measure.

.

 

 

.

About Tony Tasset:
He received his BFA at the Art Academy of Cincinnati and his MFA at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Tasset’s work has been the subject of many reviews and feature articles in various international art magazines including ArtForum, Flash Art, and Art in America; additionally, the artist’s work is included in notable private and public collections including The Art Institute of Chicago, The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and Museum für Moderne Kunste in Frankfurt.

.

 

 

.