Merlin Carpenter

Born in 1967, Merlin Carpenter is an English visual artist. Carpenter's paintings are often characterized by a deep ambivalence.

Biography of Merlin Carpenter

Initially influenced by the debates on institutional critique in 80s New York and 90s Cologne, Carpenter embarked on a journey of opposition, adjustment, and exchange with various figures in this milieu, including artists, critics, gallerists, and curators, even if it entailed a certain sense of disenchantment.

Over the past two decades, Carpenter has conducted personal archaeological excavations of cultural contexts linked to recent art history. These interventions range from staging a corporate event in Paris, simulating a London 90s rave to discuss Tate Modern's gentrified rive gauche, to recreating art school versions of Degas paintings in Nice, blurring the lines between 19th-century French art and relational aesthetics. His interventions create a dynamic tension between different contexts, juxtaposing them against each other.

Merlin Carpenter's Unique Artistic Approach

Alternatively, Carpenter may immerse himself in a character without explicitly revealing this, casting his friends and the public as art world extras. This approach can make viewers feel awkward, evoking a range of emotions from exasperation to amusement. It's a way of reconnecting with a freer atmosphere, exploring different relationships and codes, and ultimately challenging and transcending them.

Some of Carpenter's exhibitions feel like whirlwind rock tours — swift and designed to subvert their own style. t.