David Hammons

David Hammons’s provocative and socially charged works challenge conventional narratives around race, identity and culture. Born in in 1943 in Springfield, Illinois, Hammons moved to Los Angeles in the 1960s, where he attended Chouinard Art Institute (now CalArts) and the Otis Art Institute. There he was influenced by artists such as Charles White, Bruce Nauman, John Baldessari, Noah Purifoy and Chris Burden.

Working in various media and often changing stylistic directions, Hammons’s work combines politics, poetry and subversive humour to explore the marginalised experiences in contemporary America, often in reference to the place of Black people in American society. His oeuvre encompasses prints, drawings, performances, videos, sculptures and paintings.

Hammons gained initial recognition with his Body Prints series, created in the late 1960s and early 1970s with a technique inspired by Yves Klein. These works involved coating his own body with materials like grease and pigment and pressing it onto paper, creating haunting and ethereal images that comment on Black identity and representation.

His sculptures often incorporate found objects, reflecting his interest in everyday materials and their potential to convey powerful social messages. The artist seamlessly fuses life and art by incorporating previously used objects into new forms, imbuing his new sculptures with the patina of their unsung histories. Rejecting the hierarchical ethos of ‘the fine arts,’ Hammons celebrates the everyday, giving each work a new sense of worth and identity.

Hammons is perhaps best known for his African-American Flag (1990), a reinterpretation of the US flag in the colours of the Pan-African movement: red, black and green. This piece symbolically challenges national identity and represents African American heritage and resistance.

Hammons’s elusive nature and aversion to the traditional art market have only added to his mystique. His work is featured in several documentaries, offering rare glimpses into his creative process and philosophy. Despite his reticence for public appearances, his influence on contemporary art and commentary on social issues are profound and enduring.