Born in Boulder, Colorado in 1962, Currin earned his BFA from Carnegie Mellon University in 1984 and his MFA from the Yale University School of Art in 1986. Blending classical glazing methods with distorted anatomy, camp sensibilities and exaggerated Mannerist forms across canvas and linen, the artist's provocative visual vocabulary has brought him acclaim and controversy in equal measure.
Throughout his practice, Currin draws on a vast array of references spanning Northern Renaissance portraiture, Dutch Golden Age masterworks, mid-century magazine pin-ups and contemporary fashion imagery. His work relentlessly subverts traditional Western art-historical canons — directly engaging with the stylistic languages of Lucas Cranach the Elder, Parmigianino and Jean-Honoré Fragonard — to conflate high art with kitsch, sentimentality with irony and classical idealisation with subversion.
Landmark projects and exhibitions include his major mid-career touring retrospective (2003–04), hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, the Serpentine Gallery in London and the Whitney Museum of American Art, as well as solo surveys at the Des Moines Art Center and DHC/ART in Montreal. His work is held in prestigious permanent collections worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Tate Collection in London, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Art Institute of Chicago.
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Untitled
John Currin (B. 1962)
Nice 'n Easy
John Currin (b. 1962)
The Collaborator
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Jaunty & Mame
John Currin (b. 1962)
Maid of Honor
John Currin (b. 1962)
Gezellig
John Currin (b. 1962)
Daughter and Mother
John Currin (B. 1962)
Bea Arthur Naked
John Currin (b. 1962)
Reunion
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Lake Place
John Currin (b. 1962)
The Pillow
John Currin (b. 1962)
Girl in Bed
John Currin (b. 1962)
Buffet
John Currin (b. 1962)
Girl on a Hill
John Currin (b. 1962)
Nadine Gordimer
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Girl on a Hill
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Shelley
John Currin (B. 1962)
Young Man
John Currin (b. 1962)
Untitled
John Currin (b. 1962)
Jamita
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Girl in Bed
John Currin (b. 1962)
Untitled
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Untitled
John Currin (b. 1962)
The Grandmother
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Untitled
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Hippie
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Untitled
John Currin (b. 1962)
Untitled
John Currin (b. 1962)
Brinda
John Currin (b. 1962)
Untitled
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Veiled Figure
John Currin (b. 1962)
Anita Joy
John Currin (b. 1962)
Majorette
John Currin (b. 1962)
Chubby Angel
John Currin (b. 1962)
Nude Bending Over
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
The Danes
John Currin (b. 1962)
Covered Chair
John Currin (b. 1962)
Girl in Bed
VARIOUS ARTISTS (including BANKSY and DAMIEN HIRST)
In the darkest hour there may be light
John Currin (B. 1962)
Stamford After Brunch
John Currin (b. 1962)
Untitled
John Currin (b. 1962)
Secretary with Still Life
John Currin (b. 1962)
Untitled
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Girl on a Hill
John Currin (B. 1962)
Teacher
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Untitled
John Currin (N. 1962)
Smiling Girl
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Milestones
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Refinisher
JOHN CURRIN (B. 1962)
Pregnant Woman