Trex Skull

Joshua Goode is researching and developing mythic historical misinterpretations and manipulations to expose the malleability of our past, present and future. His alternate history and mythology preserve memories of childhood ranch life in Texas by reimagining objects and imagery from his youth as iconic ancient artifacts. Having studied history and worked as an archaeologist on many actual excavations, Goode conducts staged excavations around the world, working with the community as a performance. The constructed artifacts of his invented civilization mix fact and fiction to appropriate and distort the history and myths of each region he engages in. His artifacts have been exhibited in solo exhibitions in international venues such as the Razliv Museum, St. Petersburg, (Russia); Capellades Museum, Barcelona, (Spain); Zendai Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai, (China); Darb 1718 in Cairo, (Egypt); LaSala Gallery, Zaragoza, (Spain); Galerija Miroslav Kraljevic, Zagreb, (Croatia); Borey Gallery, St. Petersburg, (Russia) and the Monichkirchen Museum, Salzwedel, (Germany). Goode received his MFA from Boston University and has participated in residencies in Russia, Germany, Finland, Spain and was a researcher on an archaeological dig for the University of Tubingen at Vogelherd Cave in Germany. He received the Dozier Award from the Dallas Museum of Art and is currently the Chair of the Fine Arts Department at Tarrant County College in Fort Worth, Texas.

Used to refer to a time rather than an aesthetic, Contemporary art generally describes pieces created after 1970 or being made by living artists anywhere in the world. This immediacy means it encompasses art responding to the present moment through diverse subjects, media and themes. Contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, performance, digital art, video and more frequently includes work that is attempting to reshape current ideas about what art can be, from Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s use of candy to memorialize a lover he lost to AIDS-related complications to Jenny Holzer’s ongoing “Truisms,” a Conceptual series that sees provocative messages printed on billboards, T-shirts, benches and other public places that exist outside of formal exhibitions and the conventional “white cube” of galleries.

Contemporary art has been pushing the boundaries of creative expression for years. Its disruption of the traditional concepts of art are often aiming to engage viewers in complex questions about identity, society and culture. In the latter part of the 20th century, contemporary movements included Land art, in which artists like Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer create large-scale, site-specific sculptures, installations and other works in soil and bodies of water; Sound art, with artists such as Christian Marclay and Susan Philipsz centering art on sonic experiences; and New Media art, in which mass media and digital culture inform the work of artists such as Nam June Paik and Rafaël Rozendaal.

The first decades of the 21st century have seen the growth of Contemporary African art, the revival of figurative painting, the emergence of street art and the rise of NFTs, unique digital artworks that are powered by blockchain technology.

Major Contemporary artists practicing now include Ai Weiwei, Cecily Brown, David Hockney, Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami and Kara Walker.

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Figurative sculptures mix reality and imagination, with the most common muse being the human body. Animals are also inspirations for these sculptures, along with forms found in nature.

While figurative sculpture dates back over 35,000 years, the term came into popularity in the 20th century to distinguish it from abstract art. It was aligned with the Expressionist movement in that many of its artists portrayed reality but in a nonnaturalistic and emotional way. In the 1940s, Alberto Giacometti — a Swiss-born artist who was interested in African art, Cubism and Surrealism — created now-iconic representational sculptures of the human figure, and after World War II, figurative sculpture as a movement continued to flourish in Europe.

Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon were some of the leading figurative artists during this period. Artists like Jeff Koons and Maurizio Cattelan propelled the evolution of figurative sculpture into the 21st century.

Figurative sculptures can be whimsical, uncanny and beautiful. Their materials range from stone and wood to metal and delicate ceramics. Even in smaller sizes, the sculptures make bold statements. A bronze sculpture by Salvador Dalí enhances a room; a statuesque bull by Jacques Owczarek depicts strength with its broad chest while its thin legs speak of fragility. Figurative sculptures allow viewers to see what is possible when life is reimagined.

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