Mark Manders (DUTCH, B. 1968)

Mark Manders was born in Volkel in the Netherlands in 1968. He began his career as an artist as early as 1986, the year in which he created one of the key works in his body of work, Self Portrait as a building. Everything Mark Manders subsequently produced can be interpreted within this idea of the self portrait as a building and as an attempt to translate his own human existence and biographical memories and feelings into wordless associative memory spaces or installations. His sculptural installations - or better said: installation sculpture - can be regarded as sections of a self portrait in the form of imaginary spaces. In 1997 his work was on view at de Appel in the exhibition Selfportrait as a building. The artist has won several prices, amongst which the Philip Morris Art Prize (2002), the Vordemberge-Gildewart Prijs (2002) and the Prix de Rome (1992). His work is owned by major museums worldwide, such as the MOMA (New York), S.M.A.K. (Gent), Van Abbe Museum (Eindhoven), Stedelijk Museum (Amsterdam), The Art Institute of Chicago and Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles). Through his recent participation in the 24th São Paulo Biennial (1998), the Venice Biennial (2001) and Documenta 11 in Kassel (2002) Manders has acquired a prominent and autonomous position in the international world of sculptural artists.