Stephen Kaltenbach

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Stephen Kaltenbach
Born1940 (age 80–81)
Battle Creek, Michigan
NationalityAmerican
EducationUniversity of California, Davis
Known forpainting, sculpture, conceptual art
MovementConceptual art, Post-minimalism
AwardsNational Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
1977-78
Guggenheim Fellowship
1978-79

Stephen J. Kaltenbach (born 1940) is an American artist and author based in Sacramento, California.

Early life and education[]

Kaltenbach was born in Battle Creek, Michigan. He attended the University of California, Davis between 1963 and 1967, earning a B.A. and M.A.[1] At UC Davis, Kaltenbach studied alongside notable artists including David Gilhooly, Richard Shaw and Bruce Nauman.[2]

Career[]

After graduating, Kaltenbach spent three years in New York City, producing paintings and a variety of conceptual work including bronze time capsules, graffiti, sidewalk plaques and hoax advertisements.[3][4] He exhibited alongside Richard Serra, Eva Hesse, Alan Saret and Bruce Nauman at the Leo Castelli Gallery show "Nine" in 1968, and had a solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1969.[5]

In 1970 Kaltenbach left the New York contemporary art world and returned to California, taking up a position at California State University, Sacramento where he taught until 2005. Kaltenbach chose to refashion his practice in California, abandoning public conceptual work and instead adopting the persona of a "Regional Artist" with a focus on figurative sculpture and portraiture.[6][7]

Kaltenbach has also produced public art pieces for the city of Sacramento.[8]

A retrospective of his career entitled 'Kaltenbach: The Beginning and The End' was exhibited at the Manetti Shrem Museum of Art at UC Davis in 2020.[9]

Notable works[]

Kaltenbach remains best known for the conceptual work he produced in the late 1960s, with recent exhibitions of his bronze time capsules and other pieces from that era.[10][11]

His most notable painting is Portrait of my Father (1972–79), on display at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California.[12]

He is also known for work inspired by a found object known as the "Slant Step" which was discovered by William T. Wiley and Bruce Nauman.[13][14] He has produced drawings, sculptures, films and other work related to the step, most notably Slant Step 2, now in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.[15]

Public collections[]

Kaltenbach's work is part of a number of public collections, including the Museum of Modern Art,[16] the National Gallery of Art,[17] the Crocker Art Museum,[12] the Walker Art Center[18] and the Kröller-Müller Museum.[19]

References[]

  1. ^ "Resume". Stephen Kaltenbach. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  2. ^ Constance M. Lewallen (2007). A Rose Has No Teeth: Bruce Nauman in the 1960s. University of California Press. p. 193. ISBN 978-0520250857.
  3. ^ John Chiaverina (May 16, 2016). "Journey Through the Past: Stephen Kaltenbach, a Forgotten Conceptual Master, Makes a Comeback in New York". ArtNews.
  4. ^ DJ Pangburn (May 26, 2016). "How to Subvert the Art World and Get Away with It". VICE.
  5. ^ Mario Garciá Torres. "9 at Leo Castelli" (PDF). hundredyearsof.files.wordpress.com. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  6. ^ Erik Wenzel (November 24, 2014). "Conceptual Art Legend Stephen Kaltenbach In Conversation". Artslant.
  7. ^ Sarah Lehrer-Graiwer (September 1, 2010). "Altered Ego: Sarah Lehrer-Graiwer on Stephen Kaltenbach". The Free Library. Artforum International.
  8. ^ Tara Ingram (October 11, 2011). "Fountain: Time to Cast Away Stones ~ 13th & K". Pedestrian Art, Sacramento.
  9. ^ "Artist Stephen Kaltenbach explores time, fame, anonymity at Manetti Shrem Museum". The Daily Democratdate=November 15, 2019.
  10. ^ Peter Malone (June 14, 2016). "Revisiting the Anti-Establishment Posturing of an Established Artist". Hyperallergic.
  11. ^ "Stephen Kaltenbach at Pierogi". Pierogi. January 5, 2019. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b "Portrait of my Father, 1972-1979". Crocker Art Museum. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  13. ^ "Stephen Kaltenbach, Slant Step Observations". Chicago Gallery News. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  14. ^ "Stephen Kaltenbach". MCA Chicago. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  15. ^ "Slant Step". Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  16. ^ "Stephen Kaltenbach". Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  17. ^ "Earth Mound in a Room with Skylight". National Gallery of Art. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  18. ^ "Stephen Kaltenbach". Walker Art Center. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  19. ^ "Stephen Kaltenbach". Kröller-Müller Museum. Retrieved 2019-06-05.

External links[]

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