Bernar Venet
b. 1941, France
Lives in New York, USA and France
Bernar Venet is a prominent international artist. Active since the 1960s, his work has been widely exhibited throughout Europe, North America, South America, and Asia. His practice is multi-faceted, though he is perhaps best known for his sculptural work. Featuring bold lines and balanced arcs, Venet's sculptures range in scale from modest domestic objects to immense outdoor installations.
Favouring the use of steel, Venet has created sculptural work of monumental proportions. Comparisons could be drawn to the work of American artist Richard Serra - the two are contemporaries and have similar levels of international profile. Yet, Venet's aesthetic and conceptual framework are distinctly his own. His is a practice of subtlety and nuance, engaged with mathematics and chance. He is equally adept in creating understated wall-based work as he is in his vast public sculptures.
Material investigation has been a central part of Venet's practice. He has created works from diverse materials including coal, asphalt and tar, along with more conventional painting and drawing media. This approach to material is part of the artist's open enquiry into conceptual possibilities in art. Aligned with other prominent artists, such as Jean Tinguely, Donald Judd, and Sol Lewitt, Venet's practice has engaged with minimalist and conceptualist modalities. The breadth, depth and conceptual rigour of his practice has ensured that he remains one of the most accomplished and notable living sculptors.
Venet has received numerous awards and honours for his enduring artistic practice. His work is held in the collections of a broad range of premiere international institutions, including the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; the National Museum of Art, Seoul; and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York.
Gow Langsford Gallery has represented Bernar Venet since 2006.
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Intimate Perspectives: Small Sculptural Objects
Group Exhibition 22 Mar - 15 Apr 2023 Auckland CityThe exhibition features a variety of small sculptures and offers an alternative and intimate perspective to a genre, often focused on large-scale. The objects presented in the exhibition are small...Read more -
Arcs and Angles
Bernar Venet 20 Mar - 13 Apr 2019Widely regarded as one of France's greatest living artists, Bernar Venet has a resume that spans more than decades and includes exhibitions and accolades from all around the world. Highlights include solo exhibitions at prestigious French locations such as the Palace of Versailles, and the Arc de Triomphe. Locally, one of his tallest sculptures soars to almost 27 metres at Gibbs Farm, just north of Auckland. Gow Langsford Gallery is proud to present Arcs and Angles, a solo exhibition of works from two formative series, marking his first solo exhibition with Gow Langsford since 2012.Read more -
International Sculpture
Group Exhibition 23 Jan - 23 Feb 2013 Lorne Street [2008 - 2021]International Sculpture at our Lorne St Gallery is an exhibition of international sculpture including works by Henry Moore, Tony Cragg, Katsuyo Aoki and Bernar Venet alongside local sculptors Gregor Kregar, Paul Dibble and David McCracken. Timed to coincide with the International Sculpture Symposium, the exhibition offers a rare opportunity to see works of this calibre, from such diverse studios, alongside each other in Auckland.Read more -
Bernar Venet
23 Mar - 14 Apr 2012 Lorne Street [2008 - 2021]In Nice stands one of France’s tallest public artworks, 9 lignes obliques (2010). More than 30 meters tall, nine vertical steel beams penetrate the coastal city’s skyline. In Austin, Texas, the right angle of an office building is contrasted by the colossal angular red form of 19.5° Angle (1986). At a sculpture park in New York, the singular Cor-ten beam in Straight Line (2000) rises above the treeline and a steel arc appears to precariously balance on the headquarters of Dongkuk Steel Mill Co. in downtown Seoul, South Korea, in 37.5° Arc (2010). Last year, the Cor-ten form of 85.8° Arc x 16 (2011) flanked the entrance to the Château of Versailles and the Palace grounds housed a solo exhibition of six further sculptures. These works - along with several installations around the world, including Japan, Korea, Germany, Norway and now in New Zealand – demonstrate the prominence of French artist Bernar Venet.Read more -
Spring Catalogue 2011
Group Exhibition 31 Aug - 17 Sep 2011 Auckland City, Lorne Street [2008 - 2021]The Spring Catalogue has become an annual tradition at Gow Langsford Gallery. This year the catalogue exhibition boasts a stellar line up of works. Spring Catalogue 2011 brings together significant works from the local secondary market including paintings by Colin McCahon, Don Binney and Ralph Hotere, works by prominent contemporary international artists including Ai Wei Wei, Damien Hirst; shown alongside works from artists in the gallery stable, including Tony Cragg, Bernar Venet, John Pule, Max Gimblett and Judy Millar.Read more
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Bernar Venet unveils new sculpture for the 2024 Paris Olympics
July 22, 2024Represented Gallery artist Bernar Venet has unveiled a monumental sculpture at the Olympic Aquatic Center in Saint-Denis, Northern Paris, ahead of the 2024 Olympics. The...Read more -
Bernar Venet – 1961… Looking Forward in Venice
May 7, 2024Running concurrently with the 60th Biennale of Venice is Bernar Venet – 1961… Looking Forward at the Marciana National Library in Piazza San Marco in...Read more -
Bernar Venet Outdoor Exhibition at Mayfair's Grosvenor Square
July 6, 2023Bernar Venet has installed four large scale outdoor sculptures as part of Art in Mayfair Sculpture Trail in Grosvenor Square for the summer period until...Read more -
Bernar Venet installation at Place Vendôme, Paris
April 4, 2023Bernar Venet installation at Place Vendôme, ParisRead more -
Bernar Venet on NOWNESS
September 28, 2022Private View: Bernar Venet provides a fascinating glimpse into the artists studio, home and sculpture park. View the video and interview on NOWNESS here .Read more -
Bernar Venet, 1961-2021: 60 Years of Performance, Pictures and Sculptures
January 28, 2022Bernar Venet, 1961-2021: 60 Years of Performance, Pictures and Sculptures opens on 28 January at Kunsthalle Berlin in two large hangar halls of Tempelhof Airport. This will be the largest and most extensive retrospective of Venet's works to date bringing together over 150 works. The exhibition runs until 30 May 2022.Read more -
Gow Langsford Gallery places Bernar Venet sculpture at historic American site
November 21, 2021Gow Langsford Gallery is proud to have placed a significant Bernar Venet sculpture at White Court in Littles Point, Swampscott, Boston. The heritage estate, designed in 1895 by architect Arthur Little, was the family’s home until 1925 when it became the USA’s 30th President Calvin Coolidge’s summer house. Later in 1954, it became a school which operated for 50 years; now it is being transformed into a high-end residential complex with oceanfront views and premium facilities. The Venet work, in three parts, sits in the shared courtyard framed by the three buildings, complimenting the landscape and heritage building that sits beyond.Read more -
Bernar Venet's Arc Majeur Set to Become Europe's Largest Public Artwork
July 30, 2019A project that was originally planned for a site in France 35 years ago has finally found a new home in Belgium. Bernar Venet's Arc...Read more -
Bernar Venet Retrospective 2019-1959 in Lyon, France
October 30, 2018Musé e D'Art Contemporain de Lyon is currently exhibiting a large retrospective of Bernar Venet's works spanning over 60 years with more than 170 works...Read more -
Bernar Venet on Forbes.com
September 28, 2018Bernar Venet has been featured in a three-part article on Forbes.com discussing his upcoming major exhibitions in Lyon on until 6 January 2019 and in...Read more -
Bernar Venet Launches Poetry Book
October 4, 2017Bernar Venet has launched Poetic? Poétique ? Anthologie 1967-2017, the first poetry book by Venet that captures his entire range of poetry. 'Written in French,...Read more
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Sydney Contemporary 2023 | Booth C02
6 - 10 Sep 2023Gow Langsford Gallery has built a reputation for bringing some of the finest art from Aotearoa to Sydney Contemporary. This year, the Auckland-based gallery will present new paintings by four of its represented artists: Grace Wright, Aiko Robinson, Chris Heaphy, and Dale Frank. In addition to this, a grouping of small works will be presented by sculptors including Virginia Leonard, Pablo Picasso, Tony Cragg, Paul Dibble and Lisa Roet.Read more -
Sydney Contemporary 2018 | Booth B02
13 - 16 Sep 2018Gow Langsford Gallery will be exhibiting a selection of works from New Zealand and international artists at this years Sydney Contemporary held at Carriageworks. Visit Booth B02 to see works by Tony Cragg, Paul Dibble, Leah Emery, Dale Frank, Rosalie Gascoigne, Andre Hemer, Michael Hight, Sara Hughes, Gregor Kregar, Colin McCahon, David McCracken, Toby Raine, Lisa Roet, Ugo Rondinone and Bernar Venet.Read more -
Sydney Contemporary 2013 | Booth C103
20 - 22 Sep 2013Sydney Contemporary is Sydney’s first international art fair showcasing work by emerging and established artists from leading Australian and international galleries. For the inaugural event Gow Langsford Gallery will curate a group exhibition including new work by gallery artists Judy Millar, Dale Frank, Tony Cragg, Sara Hughes, Max Gimblett, Bernar Venet and John Pule, alongside works by British artist Damien Hirst.Read more