Iván Navarro Biography

Born in Chile in 1972, and now based in New York, Iván Navarro is known internationally for his socio-politically charged sculptures of neon, fluorescent and incandescent light. In his work, light, form and power come together both as the material base for his sculptures and installations and as an underlying sub-text exploring authority, punishment and control. Influenced by the furniture design of Gerrit Rietveld and the minimalist sculptures of Dan Flavin, Navarro is interested in how everyday objects become imbued with meaning – how they come to represent particular aspects of society, history, and human activity. Having grown up in Chile under the dictatorship of Pinochet, Navarro has a heightened awareness of the atrocities committed by the regime. Torture using electrical devices was commonplace and the exertion of power and control over the people of Chile is well documented. Navarro brings these elements into his pieces, and layering form with metaphor, he creates a body of work that asks the viewer to scratch beneath the stylized surface and explore these darker undercurrents.

Recent and Upcoming, solo and group exhibitions include Where is the Next War?, Daniel Templon Gallery. Paris, France (2013), Light Show, Hayward Gallery. London, UK (2013), Light at the End of the Tunnel, Egeran Galley. Istanbul, Turkey (2012) Ivan Navarro: Fluorescent Light Sculptures, Frost Art Museum. Miami (2012), Nacht und Nebel, Fondazione VOLUME!. Rome, Italy (2012), USA. HomeLessHome, Museum on the Seam, Jerusalem, Israel (2010), Nowhere Man, Towner Contemporary Art Museum, Eastbourne, UK, and Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris (2009), Threshold, Chilean Pavilion, Aresnal, 53rd Venice Biennale (2009), Don Quijote, Witte de Witt, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (2006), and Artificial Light, MOCA at Goldman Warehouse, Miami (2006).

His work is held in the public and private collections of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (Washington, DC), Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (Richmond, VA), Fonds National d’Art Contemporain (Paris), Towner Contemporary Art Museum, (Eastbourne, UK), LVMH Collection (Paris), Saatchi Collection (London), Martin Z. Margulies Warehouse (Miami, FL), and Centro Galego de Arte Contemporanea (Santiago de Compostela, Spain). He currently lives and works in Brooklyn.