ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sanford Biggers - Conceptual artist
Sanford Biggers creates art that upends traditional narratives about topics ranging from hip hop to Buddhism to American history.

Why you should listen

An LA native working in NYC, Sanford Biggers creates artworks that integrate film, video, installation, sculpture, drawing, original music and performance. He intentionally complicates issues such as hip hop, Buddhism, politics, identity and art history in order to offer new perspectives and associations for established symbols. Through a multi-disciplinary formal process and a syncretic creative approach, he makes works that are as aesthetically pleasing as they are conceptual.

The significance of Biggers' work within contemporary society has been celebrated through solo exhibitions both nationally and internationally, most recently at the Brooklyn Museum, Sculpture Center and Mass MoCA. He has participated in prestigious residencies and fellowships including: Akademie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart, Germany; Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw, Poland; Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, California; ARCUS Project Foundation, Ibaraki, Japan; and the Art in General/ Trafo Gallery Eastern European Exchange in Budapest, Hungary. He has been a fellow of the Creative Time Global Residency, the Socrates Sculpture Park Residency, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council World Views AIR Program, the Eyebeam Atelier Teaching Residency, the Studio Museum AIR Program, the P.S. 1 International Studio Program and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture residency.

Biggers' installations, videos and performances have appeared in venues worldwide including Tate Britain and Tate Modern in London, the Whitney Museum and Studio Museum in Harlem, New York and the Yerba Bue a Center for the Arts in San Francisco, as well as institutions in China, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Poland and Russia. The artist's works have been included in notable exhibitions such as: Prospect 1 New Orleans Biennial, Illuminations at the Tate Modern, Performa 07 in NY, the Whitney Biennial and Freestyle at the Studio Museum in Harlem. His works are included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Walker Art Center, Whitney Museum, Brooklyn Museum and Bronx Museum.

Biggers has won awards including: the American Academy in Berlin Prize, Greenfield Prize, New York City Art Teachers Association Artist-of-the-Year, Creative Time Travel Grant, Creative Capital Project Grant, New York Percent for the Arts Commission, Art Matters Grant, New York Foundation for the Arts Award, the Lambent Fellowship in the Arts, the Pennies From Heaven/ New York Community Trust Award, Tanne Foundation Award and Rema Hort Mann Foundation Award Grant.

Biggers is Assistant Professor at Columbia University's Visual Arts program and a board member of Sculpture Center, Soho House and the CUE Foundation. He has also taught at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Sculpture and Expanded Media program and was a visiting scholar at Harvard University's VES Department in 2009.

More profile about the speaker
Sanford Biggers | Speaker | TED.com
TED2016

Sanford Biggers: An artist's unflinching look at racial violence

Sanford Biggers: Bebaimis menininko žvilgsnis į rasinį smurtą

Filmed:
1,158,104 views

Konceptualistas, TED Fellows programos dalyvis, Sanford Biggers pasitelkia dailę, skulptūrą, vaizdo įrašą ir performansą tam, kad sukeltų sudėtingą diskusiją apie skaudžią Amerikos juodaodžių istoriją. Įsiklausykite jo pasakojimo apie du dėmesį prikaustančius kūrinius bei įvykius, suteikusius autoriui įkvėpimo. „Tik turiningu dialogu apie rasių istoriją galime augti individualiai ir kaip bendruomenė“, – teigia Biggers.
- Conceptual artist
Sanford Biggers creates art that upends traditional narratives about topics ranging from hip hop to Buddhism to American history. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
As a conceptualkonceptualus artistmenininkas,
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Kaip konceptualistas
00:14
I'm constantlynuolat looking for creativekūrybingas waysbūdai
to sparkkibirkštis challengingiššūkis conversationspokalbiai.
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aš nuolat ieškau naujų, kūrybiškų
būdų nemaloniam pokalbiui pradėti.
00:18
I do this thoughnors paintingtapyba, sculptureskulptūra,
videovideo and performancenašumas.
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Tam pasitelkiu dailę, skulptūrą,
vaizdo įrašą, performansą.
00:22
But regardlessnepriklausomai of the formatformatas,
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Nepriklausomai nuo formato,
00:23
two of my favoritemėgstamiausia materialsmedžiagos
are historyistorija and dialoguedialogas.
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mano mėgstamiausios
priemonės – istorija ir dialogas.
00:27
In 2007, I createdsukurta "LotusLotoso,"
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2007-aisiais sukūriau „Lotosą“
00:30
a seven-and-a-half-footseptyni su puse snukio diameterskersmuo,
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2,3 metrų skersmens,
00:32
600-pound-svaras glassstiklas depictionAprašymas
of a lotuslotus blossomžiedų.
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beveik 300 kg sveriantį stiklinį
lotuso žiedo atvaizdą
00:35
In BuddhismBudizmas, the lotuslotus is a symbolsimbolis
for transcendencetranscendencija
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Pagal budizmą, lotusas yra dvasiškumo,
00:39
and for puritygrynumas of mindprotas and spiritdvasia.
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dvasios ir minčių tyrumo simbolis.
00:41
But a closerarčiau look at this lotuslotus
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Tačiau, pažiūrėję iš arti, pamatytumėte –
00:44
revealsatskleidžia eachkiekvienas petalŽiedlapis
to be the cross-sectionskerspjūvio of a slavevergas shiplaivas.
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kiekvienas žiedlapis – vergų laivo
skersinio pjūvio diagrama
00:47
This iconicPortretų diagramdiagrama was takenimtasi
from a BritishDidžiosios Britanijos slavingstebėjimo manualvadovas
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Ji paimta iš britiško vergovės žinyno,
00:51
and latervėliau used by abolitionistsmirties bausmės panaikinimo to showRodyti
the atrocitiesžiaurumus of slaveryvergija.
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o vėliau aboliucionistų naudota
parodyti vergovės žiaurumui.
00:56
In AmericaAmerikoje, we don't like
to talk about slaveryvergija,
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Amerikoje apie vergovę šnekėti nemėgstama,
00:58
norne do we look at it as a globalpasaulinis industryindustrija.
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bet ir nelaikome jos globaline industrija.
Tikiuosi, jog dėl šio budizmo simbolio
01:01
But by usingnaudojant this BuddhistBudistų symbolsimbolis,
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01:03
I hopetikiuosi to universalizeuniversalize and transcendperžengti
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tragiška Amerikos juodaodžių istorija
01:05
the historyistorija and traumatraumos of blackjuoda AmericaAmerikoje
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taps suprantama universaliai
01:08
and encouragepaskatinti discussionsdiskusijos
about our sharedbendrai naudojamas pastpraeitis.
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ir skatins diskutuoti apie
bendrą mūsų praeitį.
01:12
To createsukurti "LotusLotoso,"
we carvediškirpti over 6,000 figuresskaičiai.
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„Lotosui“ išraižėme per 6 000 figūrų.
01:16
And this latervėliau led to a commissionKomisija
by the CityMiestas of NewNaujas YorkJorkas
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Tuomet gavome užsakymą
pagaminti tokią 8,5 metrų
01:19
to createsukurti a 28-footkojos versionversija in steelplienas
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ilgalaikę plieno instaliaciją Niujorko
Jaunų Vyrų Eagle akademijai,
01:21
as a permanentnuolatinis installationmontavimas
at the EagleErelis AcademyAkademija for YoungJaunos merginos MenVyrai,
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01:24
a schoolmokykla for blackjuoda and latinoLatino studentsstudentai,
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01:27
the two groupsgrupes mostlabiausiai affectedpaveikta
by this historyistorija.
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Ten mokosi juodaodžiai ir ispanakalbiai,
01:30
The sametas pats two groupsgrupes are very affectedpaveikta
by a more recentneseniai phenomenonreiškinys,
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jie labiausiai paveikti naujojo fenomeno.
01:33
but let me digressnutolti.
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Bet apie tai vėliau.
Aš renku medines afrikiečių
statulėles iš viso pasaulio,
01:35
I've been collectingrinkti
woodenmedinis AfricanAfrikos figuresskaičiai
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01:38
from touristturistinis shopsparduotuvės and fleablusų marketsrinkose
around the worldpasaulis.
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iš turistų parduotuvių ir sendaikčių
turgų.
01:40
The authenticityautentiškumo and originkilmė
of them is completelyvisiškai debatableginčytinas,
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Jų autentiškumas ir kilmė abejotini,
01:43
but people believe these
to be imbuedįkvėptas with powergalia,
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bet tikima, jog statulėlės galingos,
01:46
or even magicmagija.
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netgi magiškos. Neseniai sugalvojau,
01:47
Only recentlyneseniai have I figuredfigured out
how to use this in my ownsavo work.
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kaip jas pasitelkti savo darbui.
01:51
(GunPistoletas shotsšūviai)
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(Šūviai)
02:05
SinceNuo 2012, the worldpasaulis has witnessedliudininku
the killingsžmogžudystė of TrayvonTrayvon MartinMartin,
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Nuo 2012-tųjų mes – mirčių liudininkai
Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown,
Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice
02:09
MichaelMichael BrownRuda, EricErikas GarnerAruodas,
SandraSandra BlandBland, TamirGintaras RiceRyžių
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ir daugybės kitų beginklių juodaodžių,
02:13
and literallypažodžiui countlessnesuskaičiuojama daugybė other
unarmedginkluoti blackjuoda citizenspiliečiai
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02:16
at the handsrankos of the policepolicija,
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nužudytų policijos,
02:17
who frequentlydažnai walkvaikščioti away
with no punishmentbausmė at all.
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kuri dažnai lieka nenubausta.
Dėl šių aukų ir dėl to, kad
02:20
In considerationsvarstymas of these victimsaukos
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keliskart net ir į mane, dorą
02:22
and the severalkelios timeslaikai that even I,
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02:24
a law-abidingįstatymus gerbiantys, IvyGebenė LeagueLygos professorprofesorius,
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elitinio universiteto profesorių,
02:27
have been targetedtikslinė and harassedpersekioja
at gunpointByla pistoletais by the policepolicija.
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ginklu taikėsi policininkas,
02:30
I createdsukurta this bodykūnas of work
simplytiesiog entitledteisę gauti "BAMBAM."
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todėl sukūriau „BAM“.
02:36
It was importantsvarbu to eraseištrinti
the identitytapatybė of eachkiekvienas of these figuresskaičiai,
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Buvo svarbu išdildyti
šių figurų identitetą,
kai jos panašios, lengviau būti abejingam.
02:39
to make them all look the sametas pats
and easierlengviau to disregardnekreipti dėmesio į.
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Tam jas padengiau storo
rudo vaško sluoksniu.
02:43
To do this, I dipmaudynės them in a thickstoras,
brownruda waxvaškas
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02:45
before takingpasiimti them to a shootingŠaudymas rangeasortimentas
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O šaudykloje suformavau iš naujo
02:47
where I re-sculptediš naujo raižyti them usingnaudojant bulletskulkos.
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kulkomis.
02:51
And it was funlinksma,
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Smagu... žaisti dideliais ginklais,
02:52
playingžaisti with bigdidelis gunsginklai and
high-speeddidelis greitis videovideo camerasfotoaparatai.
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greitaeigėmis kameromis.
02:55
But my reverencepagarba for these figuresskaičiai
keptlaikomas me from actuallyiš tikrųjų pullingtraukimas the triggersukelti,
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Bet pagarba statulėlėms
trukdė nuspausti gaiduką,
02:58
somehowkažkaip feelingjausmas as if I would
be shootingŠaudymas myselfsave.
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tarsi šaučiau į save.
03:01
FinallyGaliausiai, my cameramanoperatorius, RaulRaul,
firedatleistas the shotsšūviai.
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Galų gale mano operatorius Raulis iššovė.
Tada paėmiau fragmentus, sukūriau formą
03:06
I then tookpaėmė the fragmentsfragmentai of these
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03:08
and createdsukurta moldspelėsis,
and castmesti them first in waxvaškas,
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ir išliejau pirma vaškines statulėles,
03:12
and finallypagaliau in bronzebronzos
like the imagevaizdas you see here,
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o tada brozines, kaip nuotraukoje.
03:15
whichkuris bearsneša the marksženklai
of its violentsmurtinis creationkūryba
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Matosi, kaip šiurkščiai jos kurtos,
03:18
like battlemūšis woundsžaizdos or scarsrandai.
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likusios smurto žymės, randai.
03:20
When I showedparodė this work recentlyneseniai in MiamiMajamis,
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Man parodžius kūrinį Majamyje,
03:22
a womanmoteris told me she feltjaučiamas
everykiekvienas gunginklas shotkulka to her soulsiela.
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viena moteris pasakė,
kad jaučia šūvius savo siela
03:25
But she alsotaip pat feltjaučiamas that these artworksmeno kūriniai
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ir mãno, jog kūriniai įprasmina
rasinio smurto aukų mirtis
03:28
memorializedmemorialized the victimsaukos of these killingsžmogžudystė
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as well as other victimsaukos of
racialrasinis violencesmurtas throughoutvisoje US historyistorija.
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JAV istorijoje.
03:33
But "LotusLotoso" and "BAMBAM" are largerdidesnis
than just US historyistorija.
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Vis dėlto, „Lotus“ ir „BAM“ –
ne vien JAV istorija.
03:36
While showingparodyti in BerlinBerlynas last yearmetai,
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Praeitąmet parodoje Berlyne
03:38
a philosophyfilosofija studentstudentas askedpaklausė me
what promptedparagino these recentneseniai killingsžmogžudystė.
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filosofijos studentas paklausė neseniai
įvykusių mirčių priežasties.
03:42
I showedparodė him a photonuotrauka
of a lynchingLynching postcardatvirukas
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Aš jam parodžiau XX a. pr. atviruką,
03:44
from the earlyanksti 1900s
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papuoštą kartuvių vaizdu,
03:46
and remindedpriminė him that these killingsžmogžudystė
have been going on for over 500 yearsmetai.
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primindamas, jog žudynės tęsiasi 500 metų.
03:51
But it's only throughper questionsklausimai like his
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Ir tik tokiais klausimais,
03:53
and more thoughtfulsąmoningas dialoguedialogas
about historyistorija and racelenktynės
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dialogu apie rasių istoriją
03:56
can we evolvevystytis as individualsasmenys and societyvisuomenė.
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galime augti individualiai
ir kaip bendruomenė.
03:59
I hopetikiuosi my artworkmeno kūriniai createssukuria a safesaugus spaceerdvė
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Viliuosi, jog mano kūryba
kuria saugią aplinką
04:02
for this typetipo of honestnuoširdus exchangekeistis
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nuoširdžiai apsikeisti mintimis
04:05
and an opportunitygalimybė for people
to engageužsiimti one anotherkitas
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ir suteikia galimybę rimtai pasikalbėti
04:07
in realrealus and necessarybūtina conversationpokalbis.
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svarbiomis, būtinomis temomis.
04:10
Thank you.
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Ačiū.
(Plojimai.)
04:11
(ApplausePlojimai)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sanford Biggers - Conceptual artist
Sanford Biggers creates art that upends traditional narratives about topics ranging from hip hop to Buddhism to American history.

Why you should listen

An LA native working in NYC, Sanford Biggers creates artworks that integrate film, video, installation, sculpture, drawing, original music and performance. He intentionally complicates issues such as hip hop, Buddhism, politics, identity and art history in order to offer new perspectives and associations for established symbols. Through a multi-disciplinary formal process and a syncretic creative approach, he makes works that are as aesthetically pleasing as they are conceptual.

The significance of Biggers' work within contemporary society has been celebrated through solo exhibitions both nationally and internationally, most recently at the Brooklyn Museum, Sculpture Center and Mass MoCA. He has participated in prestigious residencies and fellowships including: Akademie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart, Germany; Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw, Poland; Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, California; ARCUS Project Foundation, Ibaraki, Japan; and the Art in General/ Trafo Gallery Eastern European Exchange in Budapest, Hungary. He has been a fellow of the Creative Time Global Residency, the Socrates Sculpture Park Residency, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council World Views AIR Program, the Eyebeam Atelier Teaching Residency, the Studio Museum AIR Program, the P.S. 1 International Studio Program and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture residency.

Biggers' installations, videos and performances have appeared in venues worldwide including Tate Britain and Tate Modern in London, the Whitney Museum and Studio Museum in Harlem, New York and the Yerba Bue a Center for the Arts in San Francisco, as well as institutions in China, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Poland and Russia. The artist's works have been included in notable exhibitions such as: Prospect 1 New Orleans Biennial, Illuminations at the Tate Modern, Performa 07 in NY, the Whitney Biennial and Freestyle at the Studio Museum in Harlem. His works are included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Walker Art Center, Whitney Museum, Brooklyn Museum and Bronx Museum.

Biggers has won awards including: the American Academy in Berlin Prize, Greenfield Prize, New York City Art Teachers Association Artist-of-the-Year, Creative Time Travel Grant, Creative Capital Project Grant, New York Percent for the Arts Commission, Art Matters Grant, New York Foundation for the Arts Award, the Lambent Fellowship in the Arts, the Pennies From Heaven/ New York Community Trust Award, Tanne Foundation Award and Rema Hort Mann Foundation Award Grant.

Biggers is Assistant Professor at Columbia University's Visual Arts program and a board member of Sculpture Center, Soho House and the CUE Foundation. He has also taught at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Sculpture and Expanded Media program and was a visiting scholar at Harvard University's VES Department in 2009.

More profile about the speaker
Sanford Biggers | Speaker | TED.com