Artist Biography

Hemmer
Rafael Lozano-Hemmer was born in Mexico City in 1967. In 1989 he received a B.Sc. in Physical Chemistry from Concordia University in Montréal, Canada.

Media artist working at the intersection of architecture and performance art. He creates platforms for public participation using technologies such as robotic lights, digital fountains, computerized surveillance, media walls, and telematic networks. Inspired by phantasmagoria, carnival, and animatronics, his light and shadow works are "antimonuments for alien agency".

He was the first artist to represent Mexico at the Venice Biennale with an exhibition at Palazzo Van Axel in 2007. He has also shown at Biennials in Cuenca, Havana, Istanbul, Kochi, Liverpool, Melbourne NGV, Moscow, New Orleans, New York ICP, Seoul, Seville, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, and Wuzhen. His public art has been commissioned for the Millennium Celebrations in Mexico City (1999), the Expansion of the European Union in Dublin (2004), the Student Massacre Memorial in Tlatelolco (2008), the Vancouver Olympics (2010), the pre-opening exhibition of the Guggenheim in Abu Dhabi (2015), and the activation of the Raurica Roman Theatre in Basel (2018). Collections holding his work include MoMA and Guggenheim in New York, TATE in London, MAC and MBAM in Montreal, Jumex, and MUAC in Mexico City, DAROS in Zurich, MONA in Hobart, 21C Museum in Kanazawa, Borusan Contemporary in Istanbul, CIFO in Miami, MAG in Manchester, SFMOMA in San Francisco, ZKM in Karlsruhe, SAM in Singapore and many others.

He has received two BAFTA British Academy Awards for Interactive Art in London, a Golden Nica at the Prix Ars Electronica in Austria, "Artist of the year" Rave Award from Wired Magazine, a Rockefeller fellowship, the Trophée des Lumières in Lyon, an International Bauhaus Award in Dessau, the title of Compagnon des Arts et des Lettres du Québec in Quebec, and the Governor General's Award in Canada. He has lectured at Goldsmiths College, the Bartlett School, Princeton, Harvard, UC Berkeley, Cooper Union, USC, MIT MediaLab, Guggenheim Museum, LA MOCA, Netherlands Architecture Institute, Cornell, UPenn, SCAD, Danish Architecture Center, CCA in Montreal, ICA in London, and the Art Institute of Chicago.

In the past few years, Lozano-Hemmer was the subject of eighteen solo exhibitions worldwide, including a major show at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington DC, the inaugural show at the AmorePacific Museum in Seoul, and a mid-career retrospective co-produced by the Musée d’Art Contemporain de Montréal and SFMOMA. In 2019, his immersive performance “Atmospheric Memory” premiered at the Manchester International Festival, and his interactive installation “Border Tuner” connected people across the US-Mexico border using bridges of light controlled by the voices of participants in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua and El Paso, Texas. Major recent solo exhibitions include “Listening Forest,” which featured his largest collection to date of outdoor works, installed over 120 acres of land at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas, “Common Measures,” his first exhibition at PACE Gallery, New York, and “Translation Island,” a 2-km parcours which included ten public artworks, in Lulu Island, Abu Dhabi.

Solo Exhibitions

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2009

  • Levels of Nothingness, Guggenheim Museum, New York City, New York, United States, September 21st - September 27th. Commissioned by Works & Process at the Guggenheim Museum, celebrating its 25th anniversary together with the Museum's 50th anniversary. Funded by the Colección/Fundación Jumex, Deutsche Bank, German Consulate General and Mexican Cultural Institute.
  • Transition States, Haunch of Venison, New York City, New York, United States, September 10th - October 24th.
  • Recent works, Galerie Guy Bärtschi, Genève, Switzerland, May 14th - September 5th.
  • Pulse Glow, Glow Festival, Stadhuis Eindhoven, Eindhoven, Netherlands.

2008

2007

  • Pulse Front (curated by: Gregory Burke from Power Plant), The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery, Harbourfront, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Public art installation commissioned by and premiered at LuminaTO and co-produced with Harbourfront Centre.
  • Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, bitforms gallery, New York City, New York, United States.
  • Some Things Happen More Often Than All Of The Time (52 Biennale) (curated by: Príamo Lozada and Bárbara Perea), Biennale di Venezia, Mexican Pavilion, Venice, Italy.

2006

  • Under Scan, East Midlands Development Agency, Castle Wharf, Nottingham, United Kingdom, started in March. Public art commission.
  • Under Scan, East Midlands Development Agency, Market Place, Derby, United Kingdom, February - March. Public art commission.
  • Under Scan, East Midlands Development Agency, Market Square, Northampton, United Kingdom, started in February. Public art commission.
  • Body Movies, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong Arts Development Council, Hong Kong, China.
  • Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, bitforms gallery, New York City, New York, United States.
  • Under Scan, East Midlands Development Agency, Humberstone Gate West, Leicester, United Kingdom. Public art commission.

2005

2004

  • Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Galería OMR, Mexico City, México, November - December.
  • Vectorial Elevation, Celebrations of Europe expansion, O’Connell Street, Dublin, Ireland.

2003

  • Relational Architectures (curated by: Priamo Lozada), Laboratorio Arte Alameda, Mexico City, México, May - June.
  • Amodal Suspension (Center’s opening project), Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media, Yamaguchi, Japan. Access Pods and terminals for the piece were installed at: MACBA in Barcelona, MARS Lab in Bonn, C3 in Budapest, Fundación Telefónica in Buenos Aires, MIT MediaLab in Cambridge, Bauhaus in Dessau, IAMAS in Ogaki, ZKM in Karlsruhe, Kyoto Art Center in Kyoto, FACT in Liverpool, Science Museum in London, Ojo Atómico in Madrid, Laboratorio Arte Alameda in Mexico City, SAT in Montréal, Sarai in New Delhi, Eyebeam in New York City, Wood Street Galleries in Pittsburgh, V2_Organisatie in Rotterdam, Itaú Cultural Center in São Paulo, Sendai Mediatheque in Sendai, Art Center Nabi in Seoul, NTT-ICC in Tokyo, MeSci in Tokyo, Ontario Science Centre in Toronto, Emily Carr in Vancouver, WRO Center in Wroclaw and Multimedia Institute in Zagreb.
  • Body Movies, Duisburger Akzente, Duisburg, Germany.
  • Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, bitforms gallery, New York City, New York, United States.
  • Vectorial Elevation (curated by: Claire Peillod), Fête des Lumières, Place Bellecour, Lyon, France.

2002

2001

1999

1997

1995

  • ARCO '95 - The Trace, Fundación Arte y Tecnología, Madrid, Spain.

Group Exhibitions

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2009

  • Los Impolíticos (curated by: Laura Bardier), Palazzo delle Arti Napoli, Naples, Italy, December 19th - February 28th 2010.
  • 10th Anniversary: Extra-Muros (curated by: Alain Mongeau), MUTEK, Red-Light District, Montréal, Québec, Canada, May 27th - May 31st.
  • 10th Edition: Un Mundo Feliz (curated by: Rewell Altunaga), Bienal de la Habana, Havana, Cuba.
  • 5 Solos, Galería OMR, Mexico City, México.
  • ARCO '09, Haunch of Venison, Madrid, Spain.
  • Armory Show, Galería OMR, New York City, New York, United States.
  • Art & Electronic Media (curated by: Edward Shanken), bitforms gallery, New York City, New York, United States.
  • Being in the World (curated by: Berta Sichel), Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation, Miami, Florida, United States.
  • Conjugaciones: Arte Contemporáneo Latinoamericano en la Colección FEMSA (curated by: Miriam Kaiser), Museo de los Pintores Oaxaqueños, Oaxaca, México.
  • Decode, digital design sensations (curated by: Louise Shannon and Ligaya Salazar), Victoria and Albert Museum, London, United Kingdom.
  • Emergentes (curated by: José-Carlos Mariategui), Fundación Telefónica, Santiago, Chile.
  • Enter Action-Digital Art Now (curated by: Gitte Orskou, Anne Sophie Lossing, Pernille Taagaard Dinesen and Anne Sophie Witzke), ARoS Aarhus Kunstmuseum, Aarhus, Denmark.
  • Hundred Stories about Love (curated by: Chieko Kitade), 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan.
  • Open Space (curated by: Yukiko Shikata), NTT InterCommunication Center, Tokyo, Japan.
  • Pulse Art Fair, bitforms gallery, Miami, Florida, United States.
  • Socially Active (curated by: Rachael Baum, Vivian So Hyun Choi, Helena Copsey, Sue-Na Gay, Grace Zihua Lu and Sara Taylor), Art Exchange gallery - University of Essex, Colchester, United Kingdom.
  • The World is Yours (curated by: Anders Kold), Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen, Denmark.
  • White Tie & Tiara Charity Ball, Elton John AIDS Foundation, London, United Kingdom.
  • YOU_ser_: Das Jarhundert des Konsumenten (curated by: Peter Weibel), Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie, Karlsruhe, Germany.

2008

2007

2006

  • FIAC, Galerie Guy Bärtschi, Paris, France, October 26th - October 30th.
  • 15th Edition: Zones of Contact (curated by: Charles Merewhether), Biennale of Sydney, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
  • ARCO '06, Galería OMR, Madrid, Spain.
  • ARCO '06, bitforms gallery, Madrid, Spain.
  • ARCO '06, Galerie Guy Bärtschi, Madrid, Spain.
  • Armory Show, Galería OMR, New York City, New York, United States.
  • Art Basel 37, Gallerists collaboration (bitforms Gallery, Galerie Guy Bärtschi and Galería OMR), Basel, Switzerland.
  • Caleidoscopios (curated by: Gustavo Romano), Centro Cultural de España en Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
  • Electrohype, Malmö, Sweden.
  • Forms of Classification: Alternative Knowledge and Contemporary Art (curated by: Cecilia Fajardo-Hill), Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation, Miami, Florida, United States.
  • Levinas: Ethics of Encounter, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
  • Microwave International New Media Arts Festival, Hong Kong, China.
  • Only the Paranoid Survive, Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, Peekskill, New York, United States.
  • Plataforma (curated by: Priamo Lozada), Fábrica La Constancia, Puebla, México.
  • Pre-Emptive (curated by: Philippe Pirotte), Kunsthalle Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
  • Scrabble (curated by: Álvaro Rodríguez Fominaya), Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno, Las Palmas, Spain.
  • Toronto Art Fair, Artcore Gallery Limited, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
  • Volta, Galerie Guy Bärtschi, Basel, Switzerland.

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

  • 18th Edition - Webart selection, VIPER International Festival for Film, Video & New Media, Lucerne, Switzerland, May 19th - May 25th.
  • Festival de Video de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain.
  • Image architettura in movimento, Torino, Italy.
  • Lo Mejor de los dos Mundos, Cuenca, Ecuador.

1997

  • Arte Virtual, Realidad Plural, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, Monterrey, México, November - January 1998.
  • Festival Internacional de Info-arquitectura, Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Urbanismo de España, Madrid, Spain.

1996

1995

1993

1992

  • On the Same Hand but in a Different Vein, Galerie Stornaway, Montréal, Québec, Canada.

1991

1990

Permanent Commissions

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2013

  • Bifurcation, Centre Phi, Montréal, Québec, Canada.

2008

Residencies / Workshops

  • Arte, Ciencia y Tecnología: Presente Continuo, Fundación Bunge y Born, Fundación Andreani, Buenos Aires, Argentina, October 9th - October 12th.
  • HUMO workshop, Interfacing realities master class, Ars Electronica Center, Linz, Austria, February 2003.
  • Karlstad University, Karlstad, Sweden, March 2000.
  • SAGAs writing interactive fiction, Munich, Germany, November 1999.
  • Centro Nacional de las Artes, Mexico City, México, November 1994.
  • Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain, January - June 1993.
  • Banff Centre for the Arts, Banff, Alberta, Canada, May - November 1990.

Lectures / Presentations

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  • EMMA Talks: Rafael Lozano-Hemmer & Seela Sella, Espoo Museum of Modern Art, Espoo, Finland, October 13th.
  • Art and Border Relations, The Brooklyn Rail, Brooklyn, New York, United States, September 15th.
  • Art for everyone: an insight into Atmospheric Memory, SO Creative Summit, Johannesburg, South Africa, July 6th.
  • Brooklyn Talks: Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Sekou Cooke, and Paul Farber, Brooklyn Museum, New York City, New York, United States, May 26th.
  • Parsons Fine Arts Visiting Artist Lecture Series, Parsons School of Design, The New School, New York City, New York, United States, April 6th.
  • The Zip Code Memory Project: Practices of Justice and Repair: Reparative Memory, Columbia University's Center for the Study of Social Difference, New York City, New York, United States, March 31st.
  • Art Science Connect // Atmospheric Memory: Barbara London in conversation with Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, CUNY Graduate Center, New York City, New York, United States, February 10th.
  • Joint Panel with Krzysztof Wodiczko: A Dialogue on Art, Technology, and Spectacle, with Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, February 9th - October 5th. https://harvardartmuseums.org/calendar/joint-panel-with-krzysztof-wodiczko-a-dialogue-on-art-technology-and-spectacle-with-rafael-lozano-hemmer-art-community-and-institutions-with-jill-medvedow.
  • Antimonuments and Social Art Practice: A Panoramic Presentation of Platforms for Public Self-Representation, Iowa State University College of Design, Ames , Iowa, United States, January 26th.

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2014

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2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

  • Consejo de la artes de Nuevo Leon, Monterrey, México.

1998

1997

  • Conocimiento del Arte, Residencia de Estudiantes, Madrid, Spain.
  • In Art '97, Universidad de Granada, Tenerife, Spain.
  • Jornadas El Objeto Inmaterial, Trasforma, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain.
  • Keynote @ Asociación Internacional de Museos de Transporte y Comunicación’s Annual Conference, Palacio de Cibeles, Madrid, Spain.
  • Seminari.

1996

  • ARCO '96, Madrid, Spain.
  • Festival Sonar '96, Barcelona, Spain.
  • In Art '96, Universidad de Granada, Tenerife, Spain.
  • Milia '96, Cannes, France.
  • Seminario Ciberarte, Fundación CAM, Alicante, Valencia y Murcia, Spain.
  • Seminario de Paul Hertz, Valencia, Spain.

1995

1994

1993

  • ARCO '93, Madrid, Spain.
  • Canadian Studies Association, Pamplona, Spain.
  • Communications Department, Concordia University, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
  • Department of Design, Concordia University, Montréal, Québec, Canada.

1992

Performance Art

  • 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan, January 2009.

Technological Contemporary Dance with Transition State Theory:

  • X'Teresa Arte Alternativo, Mexico City, México, November 1994.
  • Akademie der Bildenden Kunste, Nuremberg, Germany, November 1993.
  • SIGGRAPH '93 Festival, Anaheim, California, United States, August 1993.
  • Circulo de Bellas Artes, Sala de Columnas, Madrid, Spain, June 1993.

Performances with Dick Higgins:

  • Storm Riders hörspiel, Danmarks Radio, Denmark, October 1992.
  • Several short Fluxus pieces, Alberta College of Art, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, October 1990.
  • The City that Could performance, Banff Centre, Banff, Alberta, Canada, September 1990.

Technological Theatres with PoMo CoMo:

  • Ars Electronica Festival, Linz, Austria, June 1992.
  • Experimental Intermedia, New York City, New York, United States, December 1991.
  • Artscourt, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, November 1991.
  • Musée d'Art Contemporain de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada, October 1990.
  • Hallwalls Gallery Vault, Buffalo, New York, United States, May 1990.
  • The Music Gallery, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, May 1990.
  • Articule Gallery, Montréal, Québec, Canada, July 1988.
  • Learneds Conferences, Université Laval, Québec, Québec, Canada, May 1988.
  • Strategies of Critique, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, March 1988.

Radio & Radio Art

  • Becoming Nobody, electroacoustic music piece, started on August 9th.
  • Read my Blips, electroacoustic music piece, International Radio Conference, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada, July 1991.
  • Hysterical Male, radio art piece (accompanying the book of the same name by Arthur and Marilouise Kroker. St. Martin's Press, New York City, New York, United States, December 1990.
  • Radio Art Exhibition, Galerie SAW Gallery, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, June 1990.
  • Radia 89.9FM, Radio station manager, Banff Centre, Banff, Alberta, Canada, May 1990.
  • Printemps Electroacoustique, CBC Radio, Montréal, Québec, Canada, April 1990.
  • New World Perspectives, Montréal, Québec, Canada, August 1989.
  • Co-host and producer of "The Postmodern Commotion" a weekly radio program, CKUT 90.3 FM, Montréal, Québec, Canada, January 1987.
  • Panic Encyclopedia Cassette; co-creator with Arthur and Marilouise Kroker, Montréal, Québec, Canada.

Collections

Grants & Awards

  • Compagnon des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, Québec, Québec, Canada June 13th 2016.
  • Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts 2015, Canada Council for the Arts, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada April 8th 2015.
  • Event of the Year: Open Air Philadelphia, Philadelphia Geek Awards, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, August 2013.
  • Premio Mentes Quo+Discovery 2013, Quo Magazine and Discovery Channel, Mexico City, México, 2013.
  • Joyce Award, The Joyce Foundation, Chicago, Illinois, United States, 2012.
  • Knights Arts Challenge for Open Air, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 2011.
  • National Endowment for the Arts grant for Open Air, Washington, D.C., United States, 2011.
  • BAFTA British Academy Award for Interactive Art 2005, London, United Kingdom, 2005.
  • Distinction, SFMOMA Webby Awards 2004, San Francisco, California, United States, 2004.
  • Artist/Performer of the year, Wired Magazine Rave Awards, San Francisco, California, United States, 2003.
  • Best Interactive Installation, HorizonZero, Banff, Alberta, Canada, 2003.
  • Foreign Affairs ACA Grant, Canada, 2003.
  • Production grant from the Daniel Langlois Foundation, Montréal, Québec, Canada, 2003.
  • Rockefeller-Ford Fellowship, New York City, New York, United States, 2003.
  • Trophée des Lumiéres, Lyon, France, 2003.
  • World Technology Network Award for the Arts, San Francisco, California, United States, 2003.
  • Gold Award, Interactive Media Design Review 2002, I.D. Magazine, United States, 2002.
  • Interactive Art Distinction, Ars Electronica 2002, Linz, Austria, 2002.
  • International Bauhaus Award 2002, 1st Prize, Dessau, Germany, 2002.
  • Media Arts Grant, Canada Council for the Arts, Canada, 2001.
  • Excellence Award, Media Arts Festival 2000, CG Arts, Tokyo, Japan, 2000.
  • Finalist, Medienkunstpreis 2000, ZKM, Karlsruhe, Germany, 2000.
  • Interactive Art Golden Nica, Ars Electronica 2000, Linz, Austria, 2000.
  • Interactive Art Honorable Mention, Ars Electronica 1998, Linz, Austria, 1998.
  • Best Installation, Interactive Digital Media Awards 1996, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1996.
  • 2nd Prize, Cyberstar, Köln, Germany, June 1995.
  • Interactive Art Honorable Mention, Ars Electronica 1995, Linz, Austria, 1995.
  • Canada Council Computer Integrated Media Grant, 1994.
  • Equipment Grant, Communications Canada, 1993.
  • Travel Grant, ICEX España, 1993.
  • Travel Grant, External Affairs Canada, 1992.
  • Bourse circulation, Ministère des Affaires culturelles du Québec, 1991.
  • Canada Council Touring Office Grant, 1991.
  • Canadian Consulate Grant, New York City, New York, United States, 1991.
  • Canada Council Computer Integrated Media Grant, 1990.

Others

  • Jury member, Leonardo Artnodes, Barcelona, Spain, 2005.
  • Jury member, Transitios_MX festival, Mexico City, México, 2005.
  • Jury member, Fusedspace competition, Netherlands, 2004.
  • Jury member, Latinamerican Experimental Hypermedia Center, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2003.
  • Research and Creativity Committee, Hexagram, Montréal, Québec, Canada, 2003.
  • International Committe, Living in Mixed Realities, GMD conference, Bonn, Germany, 2001.
  • Jury member, Fondation Daniel Langlois, Montréal, Québec, Canada, 2001.
  • Co-creator and organizer, "Life x.0" International art and a-life competition, sponsored by the Telefónica Foundation, Madrid, Spain, 1998.
  • International Patent for "System for 3D tracking of a remote point" with Will Bauer - WIPO #9814798A1, 1998.
  • 5Cyberconf, sponsored by the Art and Technology Foundation, Madrid, Spain, June 1996.
  • Chair and co-organizer, 5th International Conference on Cyberspace, 1996.
  • Grand Jury, Prix Milia d'Or, Cannes, France, 1995.
  • Curator, "Arte Virtual, 12 Propuestas de Arte Reactivo", Madrid, Spain, May 1994.
  • Jury member, Video ARCO '93, Madrid, Spain, February 1993.
  • International Advisory Committee, Inter-Society for the Electronic Arts (ISEA).