John Stezaker was born in Worchester, in 1949. He lives and works in London.
A cult figure in post-war British art, through a range of techniques made up of sparse and rigorous actions, Stezaker re-examines the role of the photographic image in contemporary culture, challenging its unreliability as a document of reality or a stronghold of memory, investigating the drift of its meanings. In his studio in London, the archive of images collected and catalogued obsessively by the artist are implemented as genuine readymades, transformed through juxtaposition, re-framing, and other editing tools to form small to medium-sized collages, seductive yet on the verge of the disconcerting.
John Stezaker solo exhibitions include John Stezaker: Portrait, National Portrait Gallery, London (2019), John Stezaker: Lost World at the City Gallery of Wellington, New Zealand (2017); the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Israel (2013); and the Whitechapel Gallery, London (2011), which then travelled to MUDAM in Luxembourg, also in 2011. His work has been exhibited in many group exhibitions internationally: the 19th Biennale of Sydney, Australia (2014); the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York (2008); the Tate Triennial, London (2006); and the 40th Venice Biennale in 1982. Stezaker’s work is held in museum and public collections around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Tate Modern, London; and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
stezaker’s work is held in the collections of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney; Arts Council Collection, London; British Council Collection, London; Birmingham Museums Trust, Birmingham; David Roberts Collection, London; Dundee Museum of Art, Dundee; Ellipse Foundation Contemporary Art Collection, Cascais; FRAC Ile-de-France, Paris; Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles; MoMA, New York; MUDAM Collection, Luxembourg; Ringier Collection, Zurich; RISD Museum of Art, Providence; The Rubell Family Collection, Miami; Saatchi Collection, London; Sammlung Deutsche Bank, Frankfurt; Sammlung Verbund, Vienna; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Tate Collection, London; The University of Warwick Art Collection, Coventry; The York Museum Trust, York; Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester; Zabludowicz Collection, London.
Cross, 2019, solo show at kaufmann repetto Milan
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Selected solo exhibitions
2021
John Stezaker, Fondazione Morra Greco, Napoli
Double Shadow, The Approach, London
2020
At the Edge of Pictures: John Stezaker, Works 1975-1990, Luxembourg + Co., London
2019
Cross, kaufmann repetto, Milan
John Stezaker: Portrait, National Portrait Gallery, London
She, Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne
2018
John Stezaker: Collages, Starkwhite, Auckland
Love, The Approach, London
John Stezaker: Lost World, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne
John Stezaker, Whitworth Gallery, Manchester
Lost World, City Gallery Wellington, Wellington; Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth; Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu, Christchurch; Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne
2017
The Voyeur: Photoroman Collages, 1976–1979, Petzel Gallery, New York
Sublime Smoke, Lisa Oppenheim & John Stezaker, The Annexe, London
Aftermath, York Art Gallery, York
Paul Nash and the Uncanny Landscape, curated by John Stezaker), York Art Gallery, York
John Stezaker: Horse, Ikon Gallery, Birmingham
2016
John Stezaker, Sidney Cooper Gallery, Canterbury
John Stezaker and Marcel Broodthaers, Gallery Sofie Van de Velde, Antwerp
2015
The Truth of Masks, Richard Gray Gallery, Chicago
Touch, The Approach at Independent Régence, Brussels
Film Works, De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill On Sea
The Projectionist, The Approach, London
Collages, The Netherlands Fotomuseum, Rotterdam
2014
John Stezaker: New Silkscreens, Petzel Gallery, New York
John Stezaker: Collages, Anna Schwartz Gallery, Sydney
2013
John Stezaker, Centre de la Photographie Genève, Geneva
John Stezaker: Working from the Collection, Les Rencontres Arles Photographie, Arles
Crossing Over, Capitain Petzel, Berlin
Blind, The Approach, London
John Stezaker: One on One, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv
Nude and Landscape, Friedrich Petzel Gallery, New York
2012
Galerie Gisela Captain, Cologne
Marriage, curated by Annemarie Sawkins, Haggerty Museum of Art, Marquette University, Milwaukee
2011
John Stezaker, Whitechapel Gallery, London, UK, touring to MUDAM, Luxembourg and Kemper Art Museum, St. Louis
John Stezaker, Friedrich Petzel Gallery, New York
The Nude and Landscape, curated by Sid Sachs, University of The Arts, Philadelphia
2010
John Stezaker: Silkscreens, Capitain Petzel, Berlin
Lost Images, Kunstverein Freiburg
Tabula Rasa, The Approach, London
Art Unlimited, Galerie Gisela Capitain, Basel Group Exhibitions
2009
John Stezaker, Richard Grey Gallery, Chicago
John Stezaker, Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne
John Stezaker, Friedrich Petzel, New York
2008
Masks & Shadows, A Palazzo Gallery, Brescia
John Stezaker, Galerie Dennis Kimmerich, Düsseldorf
Fumetti, GAK- Gesellschaft für Aktuelle Kunst Bremen
2007
Two part show: Marriages, Karsten Schubert, London, Masks, The Approach, London
John Stezaker, The Rubell Family Collection, Miami
John Stezaker, Stills Gallery, Edinburgh
John Stezaker, Open Eye Gallery, Liverpool
John Stezaker, Project Room, Yvon Lambert, Paris
2006
John Stezaker, The Approach, London
John Stezaker, Galerie Dennis Kimmerich, Düsseldorf
John Stezaker, Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles
Bridges and other Metaphors, Norwich Gallery, Norwich
John Stezaker, White Columns, New York
2005
Archiv & Erzählung [Archives and Narration]: John Stezaker and T.J. Wilcox, Kunstverein Muenchen, Munich
2004
The Third Person Archive and Other Works, The Approach, London
2001
The Holy Land Series, Wigmore Fine Art, London
1999
Angels, Portfolio Gallery, Edinburgh
1996
Garden, Cubitt Gallery, London
1991
Care & Control, Salama-Caro Gallery, London
1990
Film Still Collages, Friedman-Guinness Gallery, Frankfurt
1989
John Stezaker: New Work, Salama-Caro Gallery, London
John Stezaker, Glenn Dash Gallery, Los Angeles
1984
John Stezaker, Lisson Gallery, London
1979
Galerie Éric Fabre, Paris
Werke 1973-1978, Kuntsmueum Luzern, Kunstmuseum, Lucerne
Ikon Gallery, Birmingham
The World Made Flesh, The New ‘57 Gallery, Edinburgh
1978
Fragments, Photographer’s Gallery, London
Collages, 1977-1978, Ikon Gallery, Birmingham
Southampton City Museum, Southampton
1977
Dream Allegories. John Stezaker Collages 1976-1977, Nigel Greenwood Gallery, London
Galerie Éric Fabre, Paris
Schema Gallery, Florence
Spectro Arts, Newcastle
1976
Nigel Greenwood Gallery, London
Trois Oeuvres [Three Works], Galerie Éric Fabre, Paris
1975
Nigel Greenwood Gallery, London
Galerie Éric Fabre, Paris
1974
Galerie Decembre, Munster
Galleria Lia Rumma, Rome
Galleria Lia Rumma, Naples
1973
The Museum of Modern Art Oxford, Oxford
1972
Beyond Art for Art’s Sake: a Propus Mundus, Nigel Greenwood Gallery, London
1970
Works, 1969-1971, Sigi Krauss Gallery, London
Selected goup exhibitions
2023
Paraventi: Folding Screens from the 17th to 21st Century, Fondazione Prada, Milan
2022
Schema 50: Una galleria fra le neo-avanguardie (1972-1994), Centro per l’arte contemporanea Luigi Pecci, Prato
omelette papier, Capitain Petzel, Berlin
2020
Vent’anni – Twenty Years, 20th anniversary exhibition, kaufmann repetto, Milan
Biennale fur Aktuelle Fotografie, Mannheim
2019
Rencontres Photographiques d’Arles Edition, Arles
2018
Picture Fiction, MCA Chicago, USA
Doodle & Disegno, Blain Southern, Berlin
A Murmur of History, DE LEÓN, Bath
Journeys with ‘The Waste Land’, Turner Contemporary, Margate
Fotofest 2018, Houston Biennial, Houston, Texas
2017
The Still Point of the Turning World. Between Photography and Film, FOMU, Antwerp
A Green and Pleasant Land British Landscape and the Imagination: 1970s to Now, Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne
The Trick Brain, Aishti Foundation, Beirut
20 Years Show, The Approach, London
Power Masks. The Power of Masks, Wereldmuseum, Rotterdam
Artists and Postcards, Musee de la Photographie, Charleroi
Now, Today, Tomorrow, and Always, Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne
Blackout: Richard Hamilton, Carlo Mollino, John Stezaker, Ibid, Los Angeles
Fully Awake, Blip Blip Blip Gallery, Leeds
Cannibalism? On Appropriation in Art, Zachęta
The Ends of Collage, Luxembourg & Dayan, London & New York
2016
Flesh, York Art Gallery, York
Revolt of the Sage, Blain|Southern, London
John Stezaker and Marcel Broodthaers, Gallery Sofie Van de Velde, Antwerp
Nigel Greenwood Inc. Ldt.: Running a Picture Gallery, Chelsea Space, London
Fractured, Simon Lee Gallery, Hong Kong
The Stolen Image, Fondazione Prada, Milan
Collage: Moving Beyond Paper, Krannert Art Museum, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
On the immense and the numberless, David Risley Gallery, Copenhagen
Terrain: Land Into Art, Hestercombe House & Gardens, Taunton
2015
An Unfixed Image: The Photographic Across Media, The College of New Jersey Art Gallery, Trenton
Walkers: Hollywood Afterlives in Art and Artifact, Museum of the Moving Image, New York
Body Building, Richard Gray Gallery, Chicago
Image Search, Hannah Hoffman Gallery, Los Angeles
Individual Stories: Collecting as Portrait and Methodology, Kunsthalle Wien, Wien
Picasso in Contemporary Art, Deichtorhallen Hamburg, Hamburg; travelled as After Picasso: 80 Contemporary Artists, Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus, Ohio
RAY 2015, Frankfurt
Trial / Error / Art, The Holden Gallery, Manchester
Blow Up, C|O Berlin, Berlin
FOUND, The New Art Gallery Walsall, Walsall
Screening of Blind, Kino der Kunst, Munich
Horse, Vold Gallery, Derry
Cannibalism? On Appropriation in Art, Zachęta National Gallery of Art, Warsaw
2014
Institute of Sexology, Wellcome Collection, London
MIRRORCITY, Hayward Gallery, London
19th Biennale of Sydney: You imagine what you desire, Sydney, Australia
Ruin Lust, Tate Britain, London
…all silent but for the buzzing… , curated by Curating Contemporary Art MA programme, Royal College of Art Galleries, London
The Mysterious Device Was Moving Forward, Longhouse Projects, New York
Jahrhundertzeichen: Tel Aviv Museum of Art Visits Berlin, Martin-Gropius- Bau, Berlin
Veils, The Underground Museum, Los Angeles
Karel’s Choice- Looking Back at Contemporary Art, Frans Hals Museum, De Hallen Haarlem, Haarlem
Regeneration, The Photographer’s Gallery, London
Somos Libres II: Works from the Mario Testino Collection, Pinacoteca Giovanni e Marella Agnelli, Turin
Blow-Up, Albertina, Vienna
Remix: Selections from the International College Centre, Bates College Museum of Art, Portland
2013
The Age of Collage, gestalten space, Berlin
The Edge of Painting, curated by Tess Jaray, The Piper Gallery, London
Works on Paper, i8 Gallery, Reykjavik
Orpheus Twice, curated by Vincent Honore, David Roberts Art Foundation, London
L’image Papillon, Musee d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg
Frank Egloff & John Stezaker: Visible Merge, Barbara Krakow Gallery, Boston
Crystal Maze IV- 1+ 2+ £ = 3, as part of Nouveau Festival, The Centre Pompidou, Paris
Only parts of us will ever touch each other, Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Paris
The Feverish Library (continued), Capitain Petzel, Berlin
The Space Between, Karsten Schubert, London
Something about a Tree, Flag Art Foundation, New York
Marriage, Qbox Gallery, Athens
Kino und der kinematografische Blick, MEWO Kunsthalle Memmingen, Memmingen
Short Film Programme Still/Moving (screening of Horse and Blind), Art Basel, Switzerland / Galerie Capitain Petzel, Berlin
2012
D’après Giorgio, Fondazione Giorgio e Isa De Chirico, Rome
Deutsche Borse Photography Prize, Photographer’s Gallery, London
Deutsche Borse Photography Prize 2012, The Cube (Deutsche Borse Headquarters), Frankfurt/Eschborn; C/O Berlin
Flores; Abismo; Parataxis, curated by Carlos- Fernandez-Pello, La Casa Encendida, Madrid
Out of Focus, Saatchi Gallery, London
Remix: Selections from the International Collage Cernter, Daum Museum of Contemporary Art, Sedalia
Collages, curated by Timothee Chaillou, Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Paris
2011
Transmitter / Receiver: The persistance of collage, Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, Middlesbrough
Anti-Photography, curated by Duncan Wooldridge, Focal Point Gallery, Southend-on-Sea
Versicherungsschatz, curated by David Rimanelli, Kimmerich, New York
Make Up, curated by Mariuccia Casadio, Appalazzogallery, Brescia
The boy who robbed you a few minutes before arriving at the ball, Galerie
Gisela Capitain, Cologne
The Draw Bridge, Q Forum, London
Gisela Capitain, Cologne
A Painting Show, Autocenter
2010
FACES with: M.Anzeri, H.Bart, V.Carrubba, J.Kraijer, W.Mutu, J.Stezaker, Monica De Cardenas Galleria, Milan
HEAD, The Approach, London
Photomonth in Krakow, Galeria Pauza
The Rustle of Language, galleria francesca kaufmann, Milan
HYPERBOREAN MANNERS, Rob Tufnell at 1 Sutton Lane, London
Amor Pari oder die Liebe zum Kleinen, Kunstverein Langenhagen
Beg Borrow and Steal, Contemporary Arts Foundation, Miami
Film and Photography Central in Presentation of Recent Acquisitions, De Hallen Haarlem, Haarlem
2009
Taj Mahal Travellers, Galerie Nordenhake, Stockholm
The Quick and The Dead, Walker Art Gallery, Minneapolis
Source Codes, Sprüth Magers, Berlin
Le sang d’un poète, FRAC des Pays de la Loire
Propaganda, Rodeo Gallery, Istanbul
In The Pines, David Risley Gallery, Copenhagen
William Horner & John Stezaker, The Russian Club Gallery, London
Correspondences, Meyer Kainer, Vienna
Rodeo Gallery, Istanbul
Museum of Modern Art, Menschel Gallery, New York
The Rustle of Language, galleria francesca kaufman, Milan
Beg Borrow and Steal, Rubell Family Collection, Miami (travelled to Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs and Tubman Museum of Art, Roanoke)
Desire Acquire Galerie Bob van Orsouw, Zurich
2008
Not so Subtle Subtitle, curated by Matthew Brannon, Casey Kaplan, New York
Collage: The Unmonumental Picture, New Museum, New York
Martian Museum of Terrestrial Art, Barbican Art Gallery, London
Past-Forward, 176, The Zabludowicz Collection, London
Cohabitation: 13 Artists and Collage, galleria francesca kaufmann, Milan
Listen Darling…The World is Yours, Ellipse Foundation Art Centre, Alcoitão
Supernatural, Centro Cultural Andratx, Andratx
2007
Panic Attack, Barbican Art Gallery, London
Strange Events Permit Themselves the Luxury of Occurring: selected by artist Steven Claydon, Camden Arts Centre, London
Other People’s Projects: White Columns, Studio Voltaire, London
2006
Dereconstruction, curated by Matthew Higgs, Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York
Figures of the Player: The paradox of the actor, Collection Lambert en Avignon, Avignon
A Season in Hell, Danielle Arnaud Gallery, London
World Gone Mad: Surrealist Returns in Recent British Art, Herbert Read Gallery, Canterbury; travelling to Castlefield Gallery, Manchester; Limehouse Arts Foundation, London
The Glass Bead Game, Vilma Gold Project Space, Berlin
Tate Triennial 2006 –New British Art, Tate Britain, London
Everybody Knows this is Nowhere, Galerie Asbaek, Copenhagen
The Swan is Very Peaceful, Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles
2005
TIME LINES, Kunstverein für die Rheinlande und Westfalen, Düsseldorf
Cut, The Approach, London
1979, Bloomberg Space, London
Girls on Film, Zwirner & Wirth, New York
Collage, Signs & Surfaces, Pavel Zoubok Gallery, New York
Mourning, Sies & Hoeke, Düsseldorf
RCA print folio, Royal College of Art, London
2004
Collage, Bloomberg Space, London
Je t’envisage, La disparition du portrait, Musee de L’Elysee, Lausanne
Cara a Cara, Culturgest, Lisbon
About Face, Hayward Gallery, London
Future Face, Science Museum, London
Portraits of Non-Humans, David Risley Gallery, London
Polaroid, 39 Gallery, London
2003
Ex-press, Royal College of Art, London
Please Take One, 39 Gallery, London
2002
Life is Beautiful, Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle
2000
The British Art Show 5, City Art Centre, Edinburgh, Scotland; travelling to Collective Gallery; Dean Gallery; Fruitmarket Gallery; Royal Botanic Gardens; Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art; Stills; Talbot Rice Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland; John Hansard Gallery; Millais Gallery Southampton Institute; Southampton City Art Gallery, Southampton, England; Centre for Visual Arts; Chapter Arts Centre; Fotogallery; National Museum & Gallery, Cardiff, Wales; Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery; Ikon Gallery, Birmingham, England
1999
23rd Ljubljana International Biennial of Graphic Art, British Section, Mednarodni grafični likovni center, Ljubljana
1998
American and European Photo-art, Larem Kloker Gallery, Vienna
2nd Shoreditch Photography Biennial, London
Chemical Traces/ Photography and Conceptual Art 1968-1998, Ferens Art Gallery, Hull City Council, Kingston upon Hull; travelling to Leeds City Art Gallery, Leeds
1997
Pictura Brittanica: Art from Britain (British Council), Sydney Museum of
Contemporary Art, Sydney; travelling to Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide; Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington
Strange Days, Contemporary British Photography, Galleria Gian Ferrari, Milan
Sad, Gasworks, London
The Quick and The Dead, Royal College of Art, London
The Impossible Document: Photography and Conceptual Art in Britain 1966-1976, Cameraworks Gallery, London, travelling to Cambridge Darkroom Gallery, Cambridge
Icons, Touring, Tokyo, Kyoto and Hong Kong
Life/Live: Young British Art, Musee d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris; travelling to Centro Cultural de Belém, Lisbon
Various group shows, Bank London (1996, 1997, 1998)
1996
The Body, Touring Exhibition Canada, Various locations
1995
Elvis + Marilyn 2 x Immortal, The Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; The Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston; The Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, North Carolina; The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland; The Jacksonville Museum of Contemporary Art, Jacksonville; The Portland Museum of Art, Portland; The Philbrook Academy, Tulsa; The Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus; The Tennessee State Museum, Nashville; The San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose; The Honolulu Academy of Art, Honolulu; Hokkaido Obihiro Museum of Art, Hokkaido; Daimaru Museum, Umeda-Osaka; Takamatsu City Museum, Takamatsu; Sogo Museum of Art, Yokohama; Mitsukoshi Museum of Art, Fukuoka
The Curator’s Egg, Anthony Reynolds Gallery, London
1994
Who’s Looking at the Family, Barbican Art Gallery, London
1992
Flora Photographica, Serpentine Gallery, London
1990
Art Conceptuel, Formes Conceptuelles, Galerie 1900/2000, Paris
1987
Altered States, Kent Fine Art, New York
1984
1984: An Exhibition, Camden Arts Centre, London
1983
Geometry of Desire, Galerie Venster, Rotterdam
1982
Simulacra, Riverside Studios, London
Aperto, XL, Biennale di Venezia, Venice
Close to the Edge, White Columns, New York
1980
Hayward Annual, Hayward Gallery, London
1979
Hayward Annual, Hayward Gallery, London
Un certain art anglais…, ARC, Musee d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris
JP2, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels
1978
Art for Society, Whitechapel Art Gallery, London
1977
British Art, Palais des Beaux Arts, Brussels
1976
Art Inglese Oggi, Palazzo Reale, Milan
Times, Words and the Camera, Akademische Druck-U, Graz
1975
9th Biennale de Paris, Paris
1974
Project 74, Kunsthalle Köln, Cologne
Critic’s Choice, Tooth’s Gallery, London
Beyond Painting and Sculpture…: works bought for the Arts Council by Richard Cork, Arts Council touring Exhibition [cat.] toured Leeds City Art Gallery, Leeds; travelled to Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, and Arnolfini Gallery, Bristol
1972
A Survey of the Avant-Garde in Britain, House Gallery, London
The New Art, Hayward Gallery, London
1971
The Wall Show, Lisson Gallery, London
1970
3 Schools Exhibition, Royal Academy of Arts, London
1969
Three Person Show, Central Collegiate Building, University College, London
Selected collections
Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Arts Council England
British Council Collection
Birmingham Museums Trust
David Roberts Collection, London
Dundee Museum of Art, Dundee
Ellipse Foundation Contemporary Art Collection, Cascais
FRAC Ile-de-France/ Le Plateau, Paris
Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles
MoMA, New York
MUDAM Collection, Luxembourg
Ringier Collection, Zurich
RISD Museum of Art, Providence
The Rubell Family Collection, Miami
Saatchi Collection, London
Sammlung Deutsche Bank, Frankfurt
Sammlung Verbund, Vienna
Seattle Art Museum, Washington
Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam
Tate Collection, London
The University of Warwick Art Collection, Coventry
The York Museum Trust, York
Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester
Zabludowicz Collection, London
John Stezaker: Unassisted Readymade, 2016
JRP Ringier
John Stezaker: Film Still, 2011
Ridinghouse
Marriage, 2007
Ridinghouse
