Brian Jungen

Brian Jungen is perhaps best known for his Prototype for New Understanding (1998-2005), a series of reproduction Northwest Coast Aboriginal masks made from disassembled athletic shoes. That ingenious mash-up of two seemingly disparate hot commodities--globally branded footwear and revered First Nations artwork--reflects the artist's own hybrid cultural identity, as both a member of the Doig River band, a tribe in British Columbia's Dunne-za Nation, and a fixture of Vancouver's thriving art scene, a position recently cemented by a show at the Tate Modern in London. Other meldings of consumer goods and common materials through which Jungen has explored the exchange of goods, ideas and cultures include a basketball court made of sewing tables and a whale skeleton built from plastic lawn chairs. All represent the postmodern, postcolonial world with aplomb and a sense of humor. Includes interviews with both Jungen and the important Post-Colonial theorist, Homi Bhaba.De Boer, Solange is the author of 'Brian Jungen ', published 2007 under ISBN 9789073362697 and ISBN 9073362695.