Jonathan Monk

Jonathan Monk is a contemporary British artist who embraces the aesthetics and practices of 1960s Conceptualism while injecting the tradition with elements of humor, levity, and autobiographical experiences.

Jonathan Monk's Art Style

Jonathan Monk delves into many essential issues central to artistic practice and the contemporary art world. These include themes of originality, authorship, and the role of the artist. Drawing from the aesthetic elements and conceptual principles commonly associated with the classical era of conceptual art (spanning from the early 1960s to the late 1970s), Monk's works often directly take on the artists who have come before him, his contemporary peers, and occasionally even himself. This direct and unequivocal approach to the subject matter allows for an exploration of the ideas around what it is to be an artist and what constitutes a work of art.

Through the skillful utilization of vibrant colors, unconventional objects, and diverse materials, he injects a hint of dark humor into his creations, inviting us to challenge notions of perception, meaning, and context in his work.

Jonathan Monk employs various artistic mediums such as wall paintings, monochromes, ephemeral sculpture, and photography to reflect on the tendency of contemporary art to devour references. In doing so, he pays tribute to influential figures like Sol LeWitt, Ed Ruscha, Bruce Nauman, and Lawrence Weiner, while also demystifying the creative process.

Exhibitions of Jonathan Monk

Jonathan Monk has had numerous critically acclaimed solo exhibitions around the world, including shows at Palais de Tokyo (Paris) in connection with Musee d’art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (Paris), ICA (London), IMMA Irish Museum of Modern Art (Dublin), Haus am Waldsee (Berlin), Museum Kunst Palast (Dusseldorf), and Grazer Kunstverein (Graz), and many more.

Monk's artworks have been showcased in various group exhibitions, including Groupshow, Galleri Nicolai Wallner, Copenhagen, Denmark; L. A. International, Chac-Mool, Los Angeles, USA;  Sentimental Galerie Yvon Lambert, Paris, France; To Whom it May Concern, CCAC Wattis Institute for Contemporary Art, San Francisco, CA, USA; This Winter, Casey Kaplan, New York City, USA; News from Home, Dvir Gallery, Brussels, Belgium, and many more. 

His works can be found in the collections of Daimler Contemporary, Berlin, Germany;  FRAC, Haute Normandie, Sotteville-lès-Rouen, France; MoMA, New York, USA;  Museo Tamayo, Mexico City, Mexico; TATE Modern, London, UK; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York City, USA; Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden, among others.