Janine Antoni facts for kids

Janine Antoni (born January 19, 1964) is an American artist. She was born in the Bahamas. She creates modern art using different methods. These include performance art, sculpture, and photography.

Antoni's art often focuses on the process of making things. She shows how art changes from an idea to a finished piece. Her work also explores ideas about women's experiences. She often uses her own body in her art. This can be her mouth, hair, or even her brain through scans. She uses her body as a tool to create art. Sometimes, her body is the main subject of her pieces. This helps her explore how the viewer connects with the artist. Her art often blends performance with sculpture.

She once said, "I am interested in extreme acts that pull you in, as unconventional as they may be." She lives in Brooklyn, New York. Her art is shown by galleries like Luhring Augustine Gallery.

Early Life and Education

Janine Antoni was born on January 19, 1964. Her birthplace was Freeport, Bahamas. In 1977, she moved to Florida for school. She earned her bachelor's degree in 1986. This was from Sarah Lawrence College. In 1989, she received a master's degree. This degree was in Sculpture from Rhode Island School of Design.

Even though she studied in the United States, her childhood in the Bahamas was important. It greatly influenced her artwork. She found it hard to get used to American society. This feeling led her to use her body in her art. She felt her body language made her stand out.

Career Highlights

Janine Antoni sometimes uses `tableau vivants` in her art. These are like living pictures. They are static scenes with people acting as models.

In her art piece Slumber (1994), Antoni slept in a gallery. She did this for 28 days. While she slept, a machine recorded her brain waves. She then wove these patterns into a blanket. She used her nightgown to make the blanket.

She has talked about how she connects with her audience. She said, "I have a deep love for the viewer; they are my imaginary friend."

Antoni has been inspired by other artists. One important influence is Louise Bourgeois. Antoni called her her "art mother." Another artist who influenced her was Robert Smithson.

Selected Public Collections

Janine Antoni's art can be seen in many museums. Some of these include the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM). Her work is also at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMoMA). Other places are the National Gallery of Art and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. You can also find her art at The Broad and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

She was also part of a documentary film. It was called !Women Art Revolution. This film came out in 2010.

Exploring Janine Antoni's Artworks

Gnaw (1992)

In her artwork Gnaw (1992), Antoni used her mouth. She bit and chewed two large cubes. Each cube weighed about 600 pounds. One cube was made of chocolate. The other was made of lard. She carved the corners and edges with her teeth.

She then collected the pieces she bit off. She used them to create a separate display. This display looked like a small store window. She called it Lipstick/Phenylthylamine Display. It had heart-shaped boxes made of chocolate. It also had lipstick tubes. These tubes were filled with a mix of lard, color, and beeswax.

Loving Care (1993)

For Loving Care (1993), Antoni used her own hair. She dipped her hair into a bucket of hair dye. Then, she got on her hands and knees. She used her hair like a mop. She covered the gallery floor with the dye. As she worked, she pushed people out of the space.

Through this performance, Antoni explored the body. She also looked at ideas of power and femininity. The style of her work was like abstract expressionism. This performance happened in London in 1993.

Lick and Lather (1993)

In Lick and Lather (1993), Antoni made fourteen busts of herself. A bust is a sculpture of a person's head and shoulders. Seven of these busts were made from chocolate. The other seven were made from soap.

Antoni then "re-sculpted" them. She licked the chocolate busts. She bathed herself with the soap busts. This changed how they looked. The artwork explores complex ideas about femininity. It also shows Antoni's relationship with herself as a woman. Licking and bathing are acts of self-care. By changing her own image this way, she shows the mix of love and dislike we can have for ourselves. The soap can represent what society expects of women. The chocolate can also connect to common ideas about women.

Slumber (1994)

Slumber was a performance art piece. It lasted for many weeks. For the first weeks, Antoni slept in the gallery space. The room was empty except for a simple bed and a desk. The desk had a computer and wires.

She slept with a blanket. During the day, she continued to weave this blanket. It was an endless blanket connected to a loom. While she slept, a machine recorded her eye movements. She then wove these recorded patterns into the blanket. She used pieces of her nightgown for this. This artwork talks about connections. It shows links between the artist and the viewer. It also connects the artist to art places. Finally, it links the artist's conscious and unconscious thoughts.

Tear (2008)

In Tear (2008), Antoni created a wrecking ball. It was made of lead. She then used this ball to knock down a building. The wrecking ball's swings were timed with her blinking eyelid. Each time the ball hit the building, its surface was damaged. This showed the history of its use. The goal of this project was to make viewers think. It made them consider the feeling of danger.

Conduit (2009)

In Conduit (2009), Janine Antoni changed a copper gargoyle. A gargoyle is a carved figure, often on old buildings. She turned it into a sculptural tool. This tool allowed her to connect her body with the building's form.

Antoni was inspired by the mythical griffin. Her special device mixes parts of plumbing and architecture. The copper has changed color over time. This shows the physical marks of her performance.

Crowned (2013)

Her artwork Crowned (2013) was inspired by a personal event. It came after she gave birth to her daughter in 2004. The sculpture shows a wall. It has plaster crown molding on it. Two plaster pelvic bones stick out from the wall. Plaster is splashed around these objects. The artwork looks like the second stage of childbirth. This stage is sometimes called "crowning."

I Am Fertile Ground (2019)

I Am Fertile Ground (2019) was a special art piece. It was made for a specific place. This place was the catacombs of Green-Wood Cemetery. This cemetery is in Brooklyn, New York.

Teaching Art

Since 2000, Antoni has taught fine art. She teaches a special graduate course. It is called "Master Class/Mentor Groups." This course is at Columbia University, School of the Arts.

Personal Life

Antoni is married to another artist. His name is Paul Ramirez Jonas. They have a daughter together. The couple met while they were in graduate school. This was at the Rhode Island School of Design.

Awards and Honors

• 1996 – IMMA Glen Dimplex Artists Award
• 1998 – Genius Grant, MacArthur Fellow
• 1998 – Painting and Sculpture Grant, the Joan Mitchell Foundation
• 1998 – Larry Aldrich Foundation Award
• 1999 – New Media Award
• 2003 – Artistic Achievement Award, Rhode Island School of Design
• 2011 – Guggenheim Fellow
• 2012 – Creative Capital Grant
• 2014 – Anonymous Was A Woman Grant