{"data":{"id":"4315","type":"artist","attributes":{"id":4315,"topgoose_id":1800,"tms_id":4315,"display_name":"Karen Kilimnik","sort_name":"Kilimnik Karen","display_date":"1955–","begin_date":"1955","end_date":"0","biography":"\u003cp\u003eKaren Kilimnik’s witty, fantasy-driven body\nof work encompasses painting, drawing,\nvideo, photography, sculpture, and installation.\nIn Kilimnik’s universe, contemporary dancers\nand performers populate gothic fairy tales,\nand traditional genre painting—the still-\nlife as well as pastoral and interior scenes—\nis revisited in disparate works that meld\npop culture and history, real and imaginary.\n\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"/collection/works/39061\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Hellfire Club episode of the\nAvengers\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/a\u003e, created in 1989 for a group\nexhibition in New York, is an early example\nof what came to be known as “scatter art,”\na loosely defined approach to installation\nin which artists arranged photographs,\nfound objects, and ephemera in a way that\nseemed casual. Kilimnik’s title refers to\nan episode of the popular 1960s British spy\ndrama “The Avengers,” which was about\nplaying practical jokes on politicians as a way\nto change the course of power and current\nevents. “The Avengers” is a recurring\nreference in Kilimnik’s work and it embodies\nmany of her key themes and interests: upper-\nclass culture, female glamour, disguises, the\neighteenth century, fashion, and the threat\nof violence. The installation’s prop-like\nelements together with photocopied images\nof the actors and other materials evoke\nthose same themes while conjuring the\natmosphere of the television show. Kilimnik\nsets it all to a soundtrack that collages the\ntheme song and other audio from “The\nAvengers,” eighteenth-century harpsichord\nmusic, sixties tunes by the Surfaris and the\nRolling Stones, and Arthur Brown’s “Fire.”\u003c/p\u003e","on_view":false,"artport":false,"biennial":true,"collection":true,"ulan_id":null,"wikidata_id":"Q513948","created_at":"2017-08-30T16:39:15.000-04:00","updated_at":"2026-04-12T07:01:40.961-04:00","links":{"artworks":"/api/artists/4315/artworks","exhibitions":"/api/artists/4315/exhibitions"}}}}