Whitney Biennial 1997
Mar 20–June 1, 1997
Artists
-
Kristin Lucas
2 exhibitions -
Doug Aitken
7 works in the collection -
Michael Ashkin
1 work in the collection -
Robert Attanasio
1 exhibition -
Burt Barr
2 works in the collection -
Zoe Beloff
2 exhibitions -
Douglas Blau
1 exhibition -
Louise Bourgeois
33 works in the collection -
Chris Burden
5 works in the collection -
Bureau of Inverse Technology
1 exhibition -
Charles Burnett
1 exhibition -
Vija Celmins
11 works in the collection -
Abigail Child
2 exhibitions -
Francesco Clemente
1 work in the collection -
Bruce Conner
34 works in the collection -
Bryan Crockett
1 exhibition -
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
13 works in the collection -
Cheryl Dunye
2 exhibitions -
Sam Easterson
1 exhibition -
Wendy Ewald
1 work in the collection -
William Forsythe
1 exhibition -
Leah Gilliam
1 exhibition -
Michael Gitlin
1 exhibition -
Felix Gonzalez-Torres
15 works in the collection -
Dan Graham
14 works in the collection -
David Hammons
6 works in the collection -
Ken Jacobs
1 work in the collection -
Ilya Kabakov
1 exhibition -
Martin Kersels
3 works in the collection -
Annette Lawrence
1 exhibition -
Iara Lee
1 exhibition -
Zoe Leonard
17 works in the collection -
Sharon Lockhart
2 works in the collection -
Kerry James Marshall
5 works in the collection -
Antonio Martorell
1 work in the collection -
Paul McCarthy
41 works in the collection -
Christopher Münch
2 exhibitions -
Bruce Nauman
52 works in the collection -
Gabriel Orozco
7 works in the collection -
Tony Oursler
8 works in the collection -
Laura Parnes
1 exhibition -
Jennifer Pastor
1 work in the collection -
Raymond Pettibon
54 works in the collection -
Richard Prince
58 works in the collection -
Charles Ray
7 works in the collection -
Jason Rhoades
2 works in the collection -
Matthew Ritchie
9 works in the collection -
Aaron Rose
7 works in the collection -
Edward Ruscha
564 works in the collection -
John Schabel
6 works in the collection -
Katy Schimert
3 works in the collection -
Glen Seator
4 works in the collection -
Paul Shambroom
2 works in the collection -
David Sherman
1 exhibition -
Shahzia Sikander
8 works in the collection -
Shashwati Talukdar
1 exhibition -
Diana Thater
6 works in the collection -
The Wooster Group
1 exhibition -
Cecilia Vicuña
1 exhibition -
Kara Walker
33 works in the collection -
T. J. Wilcox
25 works in the collection -
Sue Williams
5 works in the collection -
Robert Wilson
4 works in the collection -
Roman Anikushin and Bob Paris
1 exhibition -
Charles Long and Stereolab
1 exhibition
Installation Photography

Installation view of the 1997 Biennial Exhibition (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 20–June 15, 1997). From left to right: Lari Pittman, Once Awkward, Now Spacious and Elastic (1996); Lari Pittman, Once Left for Dead, Now Madly Kissed (1996); Lari Pittman, Once Inverted, Now Throw-Away and Exponential (1996); Lari Pittman, Once Religious and Descriptive, Now Secular and Fragrant (1997); Lari Pittman, Once Pastoral and Deceptive, Now Congested and Pragmatic (1997). Photograph by Geoffrey Clements


Installation view of the 1997 Biennial Exhibition (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 20–June 15, 1997). From left to right: Ed Ruscha, Bloated Empire (1997); Ed Ruscha, Brave Man’s Porch (1996); Ed Ruscha, Industrial Truck Bodies (1997); center: M. Ashkin, No.49 (1997). Photograph by Geoffrey Clements


Installation view of the 1997 Biennial Exhibition (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 20–June 15, 1997). Kara Walker, Presenting Negro Scenes Drawn Upon My Passage Through the South and Reconfigured for the Benefit of Enlightened Audiences Wherever Such May Be Found. By Myself, Missus K.E.B.Walker, Colored (1997). Photograph by Geoffrey Clements


Installation view of the 1997 Biennial Exhibition (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 20–June 15, 1997). From left to right: Annette Lawrence, The Ancestors and Their Womb V (1995); Annette Lawrence, The Ancestors and Their Womb IV (1995); Annette Lawrence, The Ancestors and Their Womb II (1995); Annette Lawrence, Moons (1996). Photograph by Geoffrey Clements


Installation view of the 1997 Biennial Exhibition (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 20–June 15, 1997). From left to right: Paul Shambroom, Untitled (Minuteman II missile in truck, technician preparing for transport in Transporter erector vehicle, Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D. (1992); Paul Shambroom, Untitled (Peacekeeper missile W87/Mk-21 Reentry vehicle(warhead)storage, each with 300 kiloton estimated yield, F.E. Warren Air Force Base, WY) (1992); Paul Shambroom, Untitled (B83 nuclear gravity bombs, each with estimated 1 megaton yield, Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana (1995). Photograph by Geoffrey Clements


Installation view of the 1997 Biennial Exhibition (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, March 20–June 15, 1997). From left to right: Matthew Ritchie, Seven Earths (1995); Matthew Ritchie, The Binding Problem (1996); in case: Matthew Ritchie, Autogenesis (1996–97). Photograph by Geoffrey Clements

In the News
“. . . too much of what’s here, even by artists who have looked strong elsewhere, seems tepid or tired or out of context. Unfamiliar artists mostly turn out to be unremarkable. The mix of fashionable and unfamiliar names seems calculated to appease insider tastes, which may partly account for why, despite its occasional inspired moments, the show also feels clinical rather than serendipitous.” —The New York Times
“The raucous, fun-house atmosphere of past biennials has evaporated like overboiled formula [. . .]. This year’s event looked sleek and sedate enough to serve as a spread in a shelter magazine.” —The New York Times
“. . . the show is chic and brash. But it isn’t Jeff Koons cynical, or in-your-face political, or wanly theoretical. What’s notable in the ’97 Biennial is the poignancy of its art.” —The Washington Post
“There is a lot to admire in the show which, as a whole, is intelligent and challenging.” —The Burlington Magazine
More from this series
Learn more about the Whitney Biennial, the longest-running survey of American art.