- Baldrick Buckle
Baldrick Buckle (born 1972) is a British born
artist andsculptor . Considered to be a rising star of the Dutch art scene, he recently returned toAmsterdam after an unsuccessful attempt to relocate toNew York , a fraught 3-month period which culminated in a spectacular fall out with his employer, theIsraeli born artistJoshua Neustein . Both artists are noted for their uncompromising personalities.Work
Often socially or politically motivated, Buckle's sculptures and installations capture an ironic view and disillusionment with
hegemonic culture systems andglobalisation . By using common objects and images with which to illustrate his point, Buckle deliberately incorporates a high level of accessibility into his work. This has on occasion led to criticisms of both one-dimensionality and populism.Buckle's shows to date include '
Bread & Work! ' (Oude Kerk , Amsterdam, January 2007) and 'Pieces' (Europlaza, Pakhuis De Zwijger, Amsterdam, May 2007) both of which were covered by the Dutch national newspapers [http://www.nrc.nl/kunst/article734734.ece NRC Handelsblad] andDe Telegraaf . A version of 'Pieces' that included acar , acaravan , agin & tonic bar and amarket stall was also commissioned and exhibited by the organisers of the [http://www.artcarbootfair.com/ Art Car Boot Fair] 2007, held in London'sBrick Lane . The installation was extensively captured by users ofFlickr .com and on [http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A24709854 BBC Collective] and was also used as the backdrop to aRichard & Judy television feature on the event.Buckle was awarded first prize at the Berlage Fund in July 2007.
Buckle was one of the only non-RCA graduates to ever exhibit at the [http://dams.rca.ac.uk/netpub/server.np?find&site=RCA_Secret&field=Forename&op=contains&value=Baldrick%20Buckle&sorton=Ref&catalog=catalog&template=results.np RCA Secret] exhibition, held in London at the end of 2007.
Buckle has intimated that a larger version of 'Bread & Work!' might be exhibited at a suitable church in London later in 2008. Buckle has frequently cited a desire to return to the UK.
Life
Born in
Leeds ,Yorkshire , Buckle completed a foundation year in art and design at the Jacob Kramer College of Art (now known as theLeeds College of Art and Design ) before spending 9 years travelling across Europe in 'Bertha', a 7.5 ton exBritish Army truck. Entirely financed through pavement art (large pastel replicas), the manufacture of handicrafts, impromptu and wild performances (often of music) and 'general ingenuity', in an interview in 'De Telegraaf ' Buckle subsequently described this period as being 'a magical chapter of life when happiness was inversely proportional to success'.Bertha came to rest in Amsterdam in 1997 where Buckle co-founded the Dutch sand sculpture collective ' [http://www.sandaholics.nl/ Sandaholics Anonymous] '. During this period Buckle organised several other collaborations including a successful attempt to 'sell sand to the Arabs', by negotiating a commission from the government of
Abu Dhabi to construct the largest sand sculpture ever built in the Middle East (2001) and a year later he worked with the Football Association of Iraq to bust pre-war trade sanctions by remanufacturing and selling the official replica strip of the Iraqi national team as a fund raising and publicity campaign against the planned invasion (2002). In 2002 Buckle used the proceeds from the sale of his 50% share of Sandaholics Anonymous to fund a return to academia. He graduated from the [http://www.gerritrietveldacademie.nl/ Gerrit Rietveld Art Academy] in July 2007 with a degree in fine art.External links
* [http://www.nrc.nl/kunst/article734734.ece NRC Handelsblad Interview]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/collective/gallery/2/static.shtml?collection=artcarbootsale&
'Pieces' - Buckle Portrait - BBC Collective]
* [http://dams.rca.ac.uk/res/sites/RCA_Secret/ RCA Secret 2007]
* [http://www.gerritrietveldacademie.nl/index.php?id=1179 Gerrit Rietveld Academie]
* [http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/yourgallery/artist_profile/Baldrick+Buckle/24598.html Saatchi Gallery]
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