
Still from The Piano Player, 2002
digital beta, pal DVD, d.a.8 audio master, 7 minutes
edition of 5
DC-49
Still from Radio Piece (Hong Kong), 2015
single channel video projection, color, binaural sound over headphones, 12 minutes
edition of 7 with 1 AP and 1 AC
DC-2
Still from Breathing Bird, 2012
two channel video on flatscreens (19 inch), color, silent
edition of 5 with 1 AP and 1 AC
DC-42
Still from Olympia (The real time disintegration into ruins of the Berlin Olympic stadium
over the course of a thousand years), 2016
two channel video installation, color, stereo sound, HD animation, 1000 years
DC-51
Still from KING (after Alfred Wertheimer's 1956 picture of a young man named Elvis Presley), 2015-2016
single channel video projection, HD animation, black & white, silent, 10 minutes
DC-50
Still from Highway Wreck, 2013
single channel video, HD animation, black & white, silent, 15 minute 35 seconds, looped
edition of 7 with 1 AP and 1 AC
DC-13
Still from Sunrise, 2009
single channel video projection, color, stereo sound, ca 18 minutes
edition of 5 with 1 AP and 1 AC
DC-11
David Claerbout
Olympia (Januari 2018 -4°), 2017
inkjet print, collage, tape, washed ink, acrylic paint, felt pen and pencil on cardboard
image: 16 1/2 x 22 7/16 inches (42 x 57 cm)
paper: 23 5/8 x 31 1/2 inches (60 x 80 cm)
framed: 25 3/4 x 33 5/8 x 1 3/4 inches (65.4 x 85.4 x 4.4 cm)
DC-66
KING Drawing (Nuclear King), 2015
washed ink, felt pen, acrylic pen and pencil on paper
paper: 24 x 36 1/4 inches (61 x 92 cm)
framed: 26 1/4 x 38 1/2 x 1 3/4 inches (66.7 x 97.8 x 4.4 cm)
DC-40
KING (King's Nephews), 2015
washed ink, felt pen, acrylic pen and pencil on paper
paper: 18 1/8 x 24 inches (46 x 61 cm)
framed: 20 3/8 x 26 1/4 x 1 3/4 inches (51.8 x 66.7 x 4.4 cm)
DC-44
KING (Elvis at 21), 2014
washed ink, felt pen, acrylic pen, and pencil on paper
paper: 18 1/8 x 24 inches (46 x 61 cm)
framed: 21 x 26 7/8 x 1 3/4 inches (53.3 x 68.3 x 4.4 cm)
DC-45
King (skin + carpet), 2015
washed ink, felt pen and pencil on paper
18 1/8 x 24 inches (46 x 61 cm) each
36 1/4 x 24 inches (92 x 61 cm) overall
framed: 39 x 26 7/8 x 1 3/4 inches (99.1 x 68.3 x 4.4 cm)
DC-31
Two Friends, 2015
washed ink and felt pen on paper
paper: 36 1/4 x 24 inches (92 x 61 cm)
framed: 38 1/2 x 26 1/4 x 1 3/4 inches (97.8 x 66.7 x 4.4 cm)
DC-30
Photo by Diego Franssens
Throughout his career, the Belgian artist David Claerbout has investigated the conceptual impact of the passage of time through his use of video and digital photography. As scholar David Green has explained, “Claerbout’s work subtly proposes a relationship of similitude between film and the objective world that lies outside and beyond the narrative space of cinema. In doing so he poses a set of questions about how we experience film and about the nature of the medium itself.”
Specifically, Claerbout manipulates both moving and still imagery to suggest an otherworldly level of existence, something that might refer to a specific place or event, but the timeline of which is not clear, oscillating between both past and present. The element of sound is critical in many of the works, often used as either a narrative device or a “guide” for the viewer to navigate the architectural space in the film. Claerbout’s oeuvre is characterized by a meticulous attention to production details, painstakingly created often over a period of years. The resultant works are immersive environments in which the viewer is invited to engage both philosophically and aesthetically.
Claerbout studied at the Nationaal Hoger Instituut voor Schone Kunsten in Antwerp from 1992 to 1995 and participated in the DAAD: Berlin Artists-in-Residence program from 2002 to 2003. Claerbout’s work is included in major public collections worldwide, including: Centre Georges Pompidou Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris, France; Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich, Germany; Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Canada; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis and many others. He has been the subject of numerous solo exhibitions internationally, including: Schaulager, Basel; MNAC, Barcelona (2017); Städel Museum, Frankfurt; KINDL, Berlin (2016), Marabouparken Konsthall, Sundbybert, Sweden (2015); Nederlands Fotomuseum, Rotterdam (2014); Kunsthalle Mainz, Mainz, Germany (2013); Secession, Vienna, Austria (2012); Tel Aviv Museum, Tel Aviv, Istrael (2012); SFMOMA, San Francisco (2011); WIELS, Brussels, Belgium (2011); De Pont museum of contemporary art, Tilburg, The Netherlands (2009); Pompidou Center, Paris, France (2007); Kunstmuseum, St. Gallen, Switzerland (2008); and Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven, The Netherlands (2005).
David Claerbout lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium and Berlin, Germany.
Arts News video featuring David Claerbout.
Interview with David Claerbout regarding his newest film, Die reine Notwendigkeit, presented at Städel Garden at the Städel Museum, Frankfurt, 2016
LIGHT/WORK at Sean Kelly, New York, 2016
LIGHT/WORK at Sean Kelly, New York, 2016