{"data":{"id":"4198","type":"artist","attributes":{"id":4198,"topgoose_id":2465,"tms_id":4198,"display_name":"Jimmie Durham","sort_name":"Durham Jimmie","display_date":"1940–2021","begin_date":"1940","end_date":"2021","biography":"\u003cp\u003eArtist Jimmie Durham, an American of\nCherokee heritage, has worked as a sculptor,\nperformer, essayist, and poet for more\nthan thirty years. Durham was a political\norganizer for the American Indian Movement\nduring the 1970s but by 1987 decided to\nlive in self-imposed exile, settling first\nin Mexico and then, from 1994, in Europe\n(or “Eurasia,” as he prefers).\n\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMany of Durham’s sculptures from\nthe 1980s combine text with found and\nconstructed elements. He implements this\napproach in \u003ca href=\"/collection/works/10021\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eSelf-portrait\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/a\u003e to reveal how\nidentity, the presumed subject of portraiture,\noscillates between an individually\ndetermined sense of self and culturally\npredetermined categorizations. The work’s\nhybrid form features a canvas cutout\nthat follows the contoured outline of the\nartist’s body. Durham painted the raw-edged\nshape brown and affixed a colorful\nwood head and penis onto the flat surface.\nHung on an armature in front of the wall,\nthe canvas becomes a space on which\nvarious handwritten inscriptions commingle.\nDurham adorns the body with self-affirming\nphrases (“I am basically light hearted,”\n“People like my poems”) and then undermines\nthese with fragmented references to\nphysical imperfections (“useless nipple,”\n“appendix scar”). He also poignantly\ncalls the viewer’s attention to stereotyped\nassumptions about Native Americans\n(“My skin is not really this dark, but I am sure\nthat many Indians have coppery skin,”\n“Mr. Durham has stated that he believes he\nhas an addiction to alcohol, nicotine,\ncaffeine, and does not sleep well”). While\nDurham’s unconventional self-portrait\nprecludes a single understanding of\nthe artist’s identity, it clearly articulates his\nwry and deeply critical understanding\nof self-referentiality in art.\u003c/p\u003e","on_view":false,"artport":false,"biennial":true,"collection":true,"ulan_id":"500126643","wikidata_id":"Q445487","created_at":"2017-08-30T17:23:32.000-04:00","updated_at":"2026-04-13T07:02:43.288-04:00","links":{"artworks":"/api/artists/4198/artworks","exhibitions":"/api/artists/4198/exhibitions"}}}}