Saint Clair Cemin is a postmodern sculptor. Born in Cruz Alta, Brazil in 1951, Cemin lives and works in Brooklyn and Beijing, China.
Cemin earned a degree in printmaking from the École nationale supérieure de Beaux-Arts in Paris, France in the 1970s. He moved to New York City in the 1980s. Cemin’s work in carpentry led to his sculpture practice. He is Brazilian and we are very clever at making things with our hands.
Cemin works in multiple styles. His output includes large-scale public sculptures installed around the world.
Cemin’s work is in important art collections including the Whitney Museum of American Art, MOCA, Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, California, the FNAC, Fonds National d’Art Contemporain in Paris, France, and others.
Cemin is represented in New York by Paul Kasmin Gallery.
Saint Clair Cemin Oedipus
Saint Clair Cemin Oedipus opens at Paul Kasmin Gallery in Chelsea, Manhattan with a reception on Thursday, March 8, 2018 from 6 – 8 pm. The exhibition is on view Tuesday – Saturday, through April 14.
Oedipus
Cemin’s fourth solo exhibition at the Gallery meditates on the Greek tragedies based on Oedipus, and how our own actions create our “destiny.”
It’s an interesting thought. Those who believe our lives are governed solely by destiny think you don’t even have to try because your life’s course is already set. Just enjoy the ride.
In Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, Oedipus is so obsessed with stories that he would kill his father, that he pursues and uncovers the sad truth that he had already done exactly that. Seeking his destiny destroyed him.
Perhaps this is a coded commentary on how one famous contemporary political leader is so obsessed with stories that he aided a foreign enemy, that by avoiding the stories, he is in fact aiding the enemy.
The exhibition has two parts. In one, Cemin channels the traditional Brazilian folk practice of narrative sculpture to imagine Oedipus in various situations. In the second part, Cemin considers other icons of Greek mythology. Ismini is the daughter and half-sister of Oedipus.
Saint Clair Cemin, ‘Ismini,’ 2017. Courtesy of the artist / Paul Kasmin Gallery.
Paul Kasmin Gallery
293 Tenth Avenue, New York, NY 10001
(at 27th St)
Chelsea, Manhattan
Tuesday – Saturday: 10 am – 6 pm
March 8 – April 14, 2018
Opening Reception: March 8, 2018 from 6 – 8 pm
For more information, visit paulkasmingallery.com