Christian Burchard
biography |
portfolio | artists listing
b. 1955, Hamburg, Germany
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR
Art In Embassies Program, Washington, DC
Art Institute of Minneapolis, Minneapolis, MN
The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, HI
Craft & Folk Art Museum, Los Angeles, CA
The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI
Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA
Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach, CA
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA
M.H. de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA
Mint Museum of Craft + Design, Charlotte, NC
Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL
Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
Royal Cultural Center, Jedda, Saudi Arabia
Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
Wood Turning Center, Philadelphia, PA
Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2006-07 Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2006 Turning Wood into Art, Sarah Myerscough Gallery, London, England,UK
Wood Now, Craft Alliance, St. Louis, MO
Woodturning on the Edge, University of Idaho, Pritchard Gallery, Moscow, ID
Our Turn Now: Artists Speak Out in Wood, Ohio Craft Museum, Columbus, OH
ARTScottsdale, WestWorld, Art & Antiques, Scottsdale, AZ
2005-07 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2005 Art Invitational, Great American Art Company, Tacoma, WA
Nature Transformed:Wood Art from The Bohlen Collection, University of Michigan Art Gallery, University Center, MI
Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Philadelphia, PA
2004-06 Sculpture, Objects, Functional Art Exposition, Chicago, IL
2004-05,07 Sculpture, Objects, Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2004 Nature Transformed, Wood Art from The Bohlen Collection, University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
2003 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Into the Woods, Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach, CA
A Tribute to Rude Osolnik: An Exhibition of Contemporary Turned Wood, Kentucky Museum of Arts + Design, Louisville, KY
2002 Modern Bestiary: Artists View the Animal Kingdom, Wustum Museum
of Fine Arts, Racine, WI
Surface + Form, Craftwest Gallery, Perth, Australia
Hot Tea!, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Collectors' Choice, Collectors of Wood Art Forum, SOFA, Chicago, IL
2001-02 Wood Turning in North America Since 1930,
The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, MN
Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT
2001 Challenge VI - Roots: Insights & Inspirations in Contemporary Turned
Objects, Berman Museum of Art, Collegeville, PA, touring
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
The material I use, pacific madrone burl, changes as it dries, forcing me to step back from my work and relinquish control for a short time while letting the wood find its own shape. Madrone burl, which grows along the northwest coast of the United Stated, is the wildest of all the woods I know. Not only does it have a wide range of color and texture, it resists all attempts to dry evenly. Instead it warps or cracks strongly and gets very hard when it dries. In my current work of baskets, I turn it while it is still green, while it is a pleasure to cut and handle. I make use of the warping as the wood dries to create attitude, gesture and, when grouping these shapes together, relationships. The soft surface texture is a direct result of the cutting edge of my tools and light sandblasting. Most openings are slightly burnt for contrast and to enhance their looseness. When the wood is very thin, these vessels don't crack, but when the wood is left thick, the cracking can make a very dramatic effect as well. I used linen thread to connect elements.
My objects are an attempt to tell stories. They give glimpses of possibilities or act as metaphors, serving as a transport for ideas and things alike. A little fantastic, a little odd.... Some are solely because they were a lot of fun to make. They are highly unlikely with a life of their own.
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR
Art In Embassies Program, Washington, DC
Art Institute of Minneapolis, Minneapolis, MN
The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, HI
Craft & Folk Art Museum, Los Angeles, CA
The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI
Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA
Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach, CA
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA
M.H. de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA
Mint Museum of Craft + Design, Charlotte, NC
Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL
Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
Royal Cultural Center, Jedda, Saudi Arabia
Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
Wood Turning Center, Philadelphia, PA
Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2006-07 Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2006 Turning Wood into Art, Sarah Myerscough Gallery, London, England,UK
Wood Now, Craft Alliance, St. Louis, MO
Woodturning on the Edge, University of Idaho, Pritchard Gallery, Moscow, ID
Our Turn Now: Artists Speak Out in Wood, Ohio Craft Museum, Columbus, OH
ARTScottsdale, WestWorld, Art & Antiques, Scottsdale, AZ
2005-07 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2005 Art Invitational, Great American Art Company, Tacoma, WA
Nature Transformed:Wood Art from The Bohlen Collection, University of Michigan Art Gallery, University Center, MI
Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Philadelphia, PA
2004-06 Sculpture, Objects, Functional Art Exposition, Chicago, IL
2004-05,07 Sculpture, Objects, Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2004 Nature Transformed, Wood Art from The Bohlen Collection, University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
2003 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Into the Woods, Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach, CA
A Tribute to Rude Osolnik: An Exhibition of Contemporary Turned Wood, Kentucky Museum of Arts + Design, Louisville, KY
2002 Modern Bestiary: Artists View the Animal Kingdom, Wustum Museum
of Fine Arts, Racine, WI
Surface + Form, Craftwest Gallery, Perth, Australia
Hot Tea!, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Collectors' Choice, Collectors of Wood Art Forum, SOFA, Chicago, IL
2001-02 Wood Turning in North America Since 1930,
The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, MN
Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT
2001 Challenge VI - Roots: Insights & Inspirations in Contemporary Turned
Objects, Berman Museum of Art, Collegeville, PA, touring
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
The material I use, pacific madrone burl, changes as it dries, forcing me to step back from my work and relinquish control for a short time while letting the wood find its own shape. Madrone burl, which grows along the northwest coast of the United Stated, is the wildest of all the woods I know. Not only does it have a wide range of color and texture, it resists all attempts to dry evenly. Instead it warps or cracks strongly and gets very hard when it dries. In my current work of baskets, I turn it while it is still green, while it is a pleasure to cut and handle. I make use of the warping as the wood dries to create attitude, gesture and, when grouping these shapes together, relationships. The soft surface texture is a direct result of the cutting edge of my tools and light sandblasting. Most openings are slightly burnt for contrast and to enhance their looseness. When the wood is very thin, these vessels don't crack, but when the wood is left thick, the cracking can make a very dramatic effect as well. I used linen thread to connect elements.
My objects are an attempt to tell stories. They give glimpses of possibilities or act as metaphors, serving as a transport for ideas and things alike. A little fantastic, a little odd.... Some are solely because they were a lot of fun to make. They are highly unlikely with a life of their own.