“I think of colour as a material.” | Artist Dana Schutz | Louisiana Channel

Meet American painter Dana Schutz and her fascinating universe of paintings in between abstraction and the concrete.

“When I was younger, I used to feel very hesitant to use the word expressionistic. But today, I would say the paintings are probably pretty expressionistic. And I don’t mean that their gestures are so much about me, but I feel like they are meant to express an idea, a feeling or just a way of being in the world.”

“A lot of times, a painting is about problems. I think that’s an interesting way to begin a painting – something that is either difficult to depict or the painting is itself talking about a problem. I don’t see that the painting offers a solution, but it’s a place where these problems can play out.”

“I feel like the paintings can sometimes be like people. You can have this exchange with them. I would never assume what a viewer should think or take away. I don’t have this clear sense of audience when I am painting. I just hope they can have their own sense of reality.”

Dana Schutz was born in 1976 in Livonia, Michigan. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Cleveland Institute of Art, Ohio and her Master of Fine Arts from Columbia University, New York. Schutz is known for formally inventive canvases that combine figuration and abstraction to construct complex visual narratives, often depicting figures in seemingly impossible, enigmatic, or invented situations. Her expressive canvases convey emotions and psychological states of mind that reveal the complications, tensions, and ambiguities of contemporary life.

In February 2023, the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Humlebæk, Denmark, opened “Between Us” – a major solo exhibition of Schutz’s work that subsequently will travel on to Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris. Previous solo museum exhibitions of Schutz’s work include “Eating Atom Bombs” held at the Transformer Station, Cleveland, Ohio (2018), which debuted a series of paintings by the artist; an exhibition of new work at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston (2017); a career survey at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (2015); and a comprehensive solo exhibition at The Hepworth Wakefield, England (2013), that travelled to the Kestner Gesellschaft, Hannover, Germany (2014).

The artist’s work has been the subject of additional solo presentations at institutions worldwide, among them the Museum of Contemporary Art, Denver (2012); Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, Georgia (2011); Douglas Hyde Gallery, Dublin (2010); and Museo d’arte moderna e contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto, Italy (2010). In 2006, the Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, presented Dana Schutz: Paintings 2002–2005 which, later that same year, travelled to the Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland, Ohio. The artist’s first solo museum presentation was held in 2004 at the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Johnson Community College, Overland Park, Kansas.

Dana Schutz was interviewed by Marc-Christoph Wagner at her studio in Brooklyn, New York. The conversation was recorded in September 2022.

Camera: Sean Hanley
Edited by: Jarl Therkelsen Kaldan
Produced by: Marc-Christoph Wagner
Copyright: Louisiana Channel, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 2023

Louisiana Channel is supported by Den A.P. Møllerske Støttefond, Ny Carlsbergfondet, C.L. Davids Fond og Samling and Fritz Hansen.

#DanaSchutz #Painter #Artist

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[thelouisianachannel]

*Watch our other video with Dana Schutz, in which she asks "how do you begin to depict a feeling?”*

[lisengel]

I like very much her phrase : “Art is powerfull when it feels real, not when it looks real.” ❤❤❤

[Jay-nil]

thank you! I love when you say "I think of colour as a material" Colour knowledge changed my life! June McLeod opened mind to how important colour is to life, her inspirational think out of the box views on colour are wondrous. Thank you for your video, I love your work!

[vckfkg]

Easily one of the greatest living painters. It's a privilege to hear this genius speak about her process and see the work develop like this.

[flaneurpainter]

I like how soft and non-judgmental her explanations are.

[billytherobot]

I love humble artists who overflow with original talent. That's Dana. She has a great way of speaking and explaining the general direction of her work while still leaving things open to the viewer's interpretation. Some of her pieces seem so complex but she tries to whittle the story down into a couple of sentences to almost help you out if you can't find meaning on your own. And she speaks of her work in in the most pleasant and modest way. I doubt she knows just how great she is.

[garywillis]

Love her relationship with her practice, and the humble confidence with which she speaks of her work.

[Jacob]

Finally some content on Youtube about the creative process that features an actual artist that isn't just some content creator looking to hit it big disguised as an artist.

[JorgeVonninger]

Some of Dana's work, in my opinion, is the best art of today and has great historical significance.

[studioduberich]

Watching her only consolidates my belief that living an artistic life is the best way to pass time on this earth ❤️

[droolpuppy]

I love her unique style of creating art, she's phenomenal.

[graceaxisa]

I always think that Expressionism is so broad. It's the perfect description. It encompasses all sorts of individual styles, where no two artists are alike. Where freedom to explore and express form, colour and style is paramount. The style spans many decades, throughout the world, and continues to evolve. Thank you for this wonderful video ❤

[tealorturquoise]

Love hearing the artists speak about her process and seeing it worked out on canvas and then translated in a new medium for her work with sculpture.

[Marie-Elmo]

I've just discovered her work today, in the parisian exhibition at the MAM, and waouh! it really struck a chord with me! Great artist! I'll visit the exhibition again in a few days to enjoy fully all its richness.

[dr_shrinker]

I just saw her work today, for the first time. There’s nothing as cool as seeing new, great art for the first time.

[ingridllinas]

Paintings give and intimate exchange, unpredictable. Expressionist and colorful is a great description of your work. So good you began sculpting. Large painting in the back is phenomenal!

[lisengel]

I love her passion about art - and her practice of being totally in the painting process. Color is a strong material and it can change the whole Space and truly it can change the Human Consciousness 🎵🎶🎨 and I totally agree that the colorfull expressionistic style is a strong way of communicating - and not only about the feelings of the artist but more about the atmosphere of a Space and an event. And in this way each painting is a unique expression.

[ziraprod]

Very rare authenticity and originality for a modern artist. female. keeps getting better and better from where she started - almost copying. I am so proud of her.

[bruno_LISAartisticvision]

Dana Schutz you got paint on everything. I love your ocd neat work area. ❤❤

[morganrussell]

I remember seeing her shows in the early otts in NY with painter friends, we were all excited to see such good robust painting in the galleries (there wasn’t much of it then). What an inspiration for younger artists!