Cosima von Bonin

Cosima von Bonin
Born
Cosima Von Bonin

1962 (age 63–64)
Mombasa, Kenya
Alma materHochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg
SpouseMichael Krebber

Cosima von Bonin (born 1962) is a German contemporary artist[1][2] whose interdisciplinary practice includes sculpture, textiles, sound, film, and performance.[3] She is known for being a political artist as well as by her humour, aquatic caricatures, and use of pop-culture characters, such as Daffy Duck.[4][5][6][7][8]

Early life and education

Cosima von Bonin was born in Mombasa, Kenya in 1962.[9] She was raised in Austria.[10]

Von Bonin studied at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste Hamburg (University of Fine Arts in Hamburg), where she studied under the tutelage of Martin Kippenberger and assistant Michael Krebber.[11] Von Bonin said that she met many important figures while in college, including Friedrich Petzel, Jutta Koether, and Diedrich Diederischsen.[11]

In 1989, von Bonin moved to Cologne.[12] There, she worked at a bar, whilst also connecting with the writers Diedrich Diederichsen and Clara Drechsler, and artist Martin Kippenberger.

When von Bonin was still a student, she collaborated with Josef Strau in 1990, creating a work where von Bonin exhibited herself in a window display at a Hamburg showroom.[1]

Work

Exhibition at Mumok, Vienna 2014-2015

Von Bonin works across a variety of media, including sculpture (using plush toys, cardboard), sound, film, photography,[5] and textiles (including tapestry).[13] Von Bonin has also exhibited works across a variety of venues including at parties, DJ sets, music performances and audio and video exhibitions.[1] She

Von Bonin's work explores the relationship between works of art and the world of fashion, music and architecture. She also draws inspiration from the intellectual, artistic, and musical culture of her neighbourhood in Cologne, where she lives and works.[1][14] She has been described as bringing play and fun into her work.[13]

Von Bonin often focuses on collective artistic production and works mainly in collaborations.[15][16] She has collaborated with other artists including Dirk von Lowtzow, Michael Krebber, Mark von Schlegell, Kai Althoff, Sergej Jensen [17]

Von Bonin does not explain the meaning of her works.[11][16][12] She has also said that her work "has nothing to say, that there is nothing to learn from it."[12] Art critics Jan Avgikos[15] and Holly Myers,[13] feel that understanding von Bonin’s works can be difficult or frustrating for this reason.[15][13] She uses humor in her works. but art critics Nuit Banai and Jan Avgikos have argued that the employment of humor may be used to make her seem elusive.[15][5] She has been called a political artist as well, especially when describing her work in her sixth solo exhibition, 'What if it Barks?'.[6][8] Director of Raven Row, Alex Sainsbury, describes von Bonin's work as "anti-didactic and anti-authoritarian."[12]

Her work has been compared to Sigmar Polke, Martin Kippenberger, and Rosemarie Trockel.[18][15] Von Bonin has said that André Cadere, Marcel Broodthaers, Cady Noland, Mike Kelley, Isa Genzken, Poul Gernes and Martin Kippenberger influenced her.[11]

Career

Exhibition at Mumok, Vienna 2014-2015

Von Bonin's 2016 - 2017 exhibition Who's Exploiting Who in the Deep Sea was her first solo museum exhibition in New York and Canada.[19][20] The works within the exhibition consisted of textiles, music, sculpture, performance, video, and painting. One of the sculptures in this exhibition is a soft sculpture Total Produce (Morality) (2010), it is a large octopus with varying and colourful patterns sat upon a just as colourful raised platform that has lights underneath. Von Bonin had included past artworks from the 2000s displayed in this exhibition.[4]

Von Bonin's first full-scale installation was in her exhibition 'What If It Barks?' in 2018 at Petzel Gallery, New York, her eighth show with the gallery. The theme was mostly aquatic except for a few works, such as a miniature hippopotamus inside of a cylindrical birdhouse titled HIPPO'S HOUSE (PROPERTY OF ARNOLD MOSSELMAN, THE HAGUE).[8] The exhibition contained oversized cat tins that bellowed smoke, this can is called AUTHORITY PURÉE, there are wooden barrels with polyester shark heads poking out from the top and a plush plaid missile in its mouth, fish of varying sizes sporting clothes and ukuleles, and more.[8] In the exhibition, von Bonin also presented a performative writing called a performative utterance.[8]

In 2019, Von Bonin had her first solo exhibition in Mexico at House of Gaga, Mexico City.[21][22] The exhibition contained a pink steel-wired cement mixer that held a drove of pink pig stuffed animals, four wooden canvases of Daffy Duck being enclosed and squashed by a black entity, an orange steel-wire cement mixer with dark blue lobster claws dangling and handcuffed to the barrel, and more.[22][21][23] Von Bonin has been represented by the House of Gaga in Mexico City since 2019.[23]

In 2025, von Bonin held an exhibition Upstairs Downstairs at Raven Row in London.[24] The exhibition featured a selection of work spanning 35 years, from the early 1990s until 2025.[12]

In 2026, von Bonin was commissioned to create plush whales, clams, crabs, and other sea creatures for the first runway show of Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez for Loewe during Paris Fashion Week.[25]

Exhibitions

Solo

Year Title Institution Location Ref
2000 The Cousins Braunschweig Art Association, Kunstverein Braunschweig Braunschweig
2007- 2008 Roger and Out Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles [26]
2010 The Fatigue Empire Kunsthaus Bregenz Austria [27]
2010 - 2011 The Lazy Susan Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art Rotterdam
2011 Arnolfini Bristol
Mamco Geneva
2011 - 2012 Museum Ludwig Cologne
2011 Character Appropriation Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum St. Louis [28]
2014 - 2015 Hippies Use the Side Door The Year 2014 Has Lost the Plot Mumok Vienna [5][29]
2016 Who's Exploiting Who in the Deep Sea Glasgow International Glasgow [7]
2016 - 2017 SculptureCenter Queens, New York [4]
2017 Oakville Galleries Oakville, Ontario [20]
2018 'What If It Barks?' Petzel Gallery New York [8]
2019 Shit and Chanel House of Gaga Mexico City [23]
2023 Boy at Work Lumiar Cité Lisbon
2023 - 2024 WHAT IF THEY BARK? High Line New York [30]
2024 The Faker Galerie Neu Berlin [31]
Feelings Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt [32]
2024 - 2025 Songs for Gay Dogs MUDAM Luxembourg [33]
2025 Upstairs Downstairs Raven Row London [24]

Group

Year Title Institution Location Ref
1995 First Graz Fan Fest
1996 Glockengeschrei nach Deutz - das Beste aller Seiten (The Bell Screams Towards Deutz - the Best of all Sides)
1997 Home Sweet Home Deichtorhallen Hamburg [9]
2007 Documenta 12 [9]

Public collections

Cosima von Bonin's art can be found in a number of public collections, including:

Personal life

Von Bonin lives in Cologne with her husband, Michael Krebber.[15][8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Grosenick, Uta, ed. (2001). Women artists: in the 20th and 21st century. Köln [etc.]: Taschen. ISBN 3-8228-5854-4.
  2. ↑ Holzwarth, Hans W. (2009). 100 Contemporary Artists A-Z (Taschen's 25th anniversary special ed.). Köln: Taschen. p. 62. ISBN 978-3-8365-1490-3.
  3. ↑ "Cosima von Bonin: The Juxtaposition of Nothings". Petzel Gallery. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 "Cosima von Bonin: Who's Exploiting Who in the Deep Sea?". www.sculpture-center.org. Aug 22, 2016. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Banai, Nuit (Feb 2015). "Cosima von Bonin". ARTFORUM. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  6. 1 2 Godfrey Larmon, Anne (Summer 2018). "Cosima von Bonin". ARTFORUM. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Mosselman, Arnold; Richter, Claus (November 10, 2023). "Cosima von Bonin - WHAT IF IT BARKS? Featuring AUTHORITY PURÉE - Exhibitions - Petzel Gallery". Petzel. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Petzel Gallery - Cosima von Bonin" Archived 2016-06-04 at the Wayback Machine, Petzel Gallery, Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  9. ↑ Princenthal, Nancy. "Cosima Von Bonin". Art in America. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Gebremedhin, Thomas (Feb 23, 2018). "Q&A With Cosima von Bonin". Wall Street Journal Magazine. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Sainsbury, Alex (2025). Cosima von Bonin: Upstairs Downstairs Exhibition Catalogue. Raven Row. ISBN 978-1-0686556-3-0.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Myers, Holly (October 9, 2007). "There must be a point to all of this". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  13. ↑ "About the artist", Kemper Art Museum, Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Avgikos, Jan (Jun 2003). "Cosima Von Bonin". ARTFORUM. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  15. 1 2 Heartney, Eleanor (2018-04-04). "COSIMA VON BONIN with Eleanor Heartney". The Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  16. ↑ Grosenick, Uta; Riemschneider, Burkhard; Larsen, Lars Bang (1999). Art at the turn of the millennium. Internet Archive. Köln; New York : Taschen. ISBN 978-3-8228-7393-9.
  17. ↑ Saltz, Jerry (June 28, 2006). "Martin Eder/Cosima von Bonin". MutualArt. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  18. ↑ Faragon, Jason (September 22, 2016). "'Cosima von Bonin,' Swimming Against the Tide". The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  19. 1 2 "Cosima von Bonin". www.oakvillegalleries.com. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  20. 1 2 ARTnews (2019-06-03). "Cosima von Bonin at House of Gaga, Mexico City". ARTnews. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  21. 1 2 Iza, Fabiola (2019-06-14). "Cosima von Bonin". ARTFORUM. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  22. 1 2 3 "House of Gaga / Cosima von Bonin / Shit & Chanel". www.houseofgaga.com. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  23. 1 2 "Cosima von Bonin: Upstairs Downstairs". ravenrow.org. Retrieved 2026-08-24.
  24. ↑ Alex Greenberger (6 March 2026), ARTnews.
  25. ↑ "Cosima von Bonin: Roger and Out", MoCA, Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  26. ↑ "Cosima von Bonin: The Fatigue Empire", eflux, Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  27. ↑ "Cosima von Bonin", Kemper Art Museum, Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  28. ↑ "Cosima von Bonin", mumok, Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  29. ↑ "WHAT IF THEY BARK?". The High Line. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  30. ↑ "Cosima von Bonin "The Faker" at Galerie Neu, Berlin — Mousse Magazine and Publishing". www.moussemagazine.it. 2024-05-22. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  31. ↑ "COSIMA VON BONIN". SCHIRN KUNSTHALLE FRANKFURT. 2024-03-21. Retrieved 2024-09-23.
  32. ↑ "Songs for Gay Dogs". Mudam. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  33. ↑ "Museum Ludwig: Bonin, Cosima von, Ohne Titel". museum-ludwig.kulturelles-erbe-koeln.de. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  34. ↑ "#16 (Pilz), 2000 - Friends of the National Gallery". Freunde der Nationalgalerie. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  35. ↑ "NOTHING # 02 (CHÂTEAU FATIGUE)". Digital Collection. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  36. ↑ "Cosima von Bonin - Artists - Petzel Gallery". www.petzel.com. Retrieved 2023-11-10.

Further reading

  • Grosenick, Uta; Riemschneider, Burkhard, eds. (2005). Art Now (25th anniversary ed.). Köln: Taschen. pp. 36–39. ISBN 9783822840931. OCLC 191239335.
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