Jessica Voorsanger
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Jessica Voorsanger (born 1965) is an American artist and academic, living and working in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. She has worked on the "Mystery Train" project for the
Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an modernism, artistic and cultural centre on The Mall (London), The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps a ...
to make contemporary art more accessible to people with learning disabilities. Her work has been exhibited more than two dozen times with her husband, fellow artist Patrick Brill, best known as
Bob and Roberta Smith Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Bob (surname) * Bob (dog), a dog that received the Dickin Medal for bravery in World War II * Bob t ...
.


Early life and education

Jessica Voorsanger was born in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in 1965 and grew up on the
Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper We ...
of Manhattan. Two of her grandparents were artists: her father's mother and her mother's father. She first studied
fine art In European academic traditions, fine art (or, fine arts) is made primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from popular art, decorative art or applied art, which also either serve some practical function (such as ...
at The
Brooklyn Museum Art School The Brooklyn Museum Art School was a non-degree-granting professional school that opened at the Brooklyn Museum in Brooklyn, New York in the summer of 1941. The Brooklyn Museum Art School provided instruction for amateur artists as well until Ja ...
in New York from 1982 to 1983 and obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts at
Rhode Island School of Design The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase th ...
in 1987. She began graduate studies at
Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a Member institutions of the University of London, constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The G ...
, London in 1991 and received her
Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...
in fine art in 1993. She met Patrick Brill (the artist Bob and Roberta Smith) after graduating from Rhode Island School of Design. When he returned to London, she went with him and they are now married.


Artist

Voorsanger creates inter-active installations, objects, performances and events that reference pop and celebrity culture. As a child growing up in the 1970s she was enamored with popular
sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...
television shows like ''
The Brady Bunch ''The Brady Bunch'' is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired five seasons from September 26, 1969, to March 8, 1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family of six children, with three boys and three gir ...
'' and ''
The Partridge Family ''The Partridge Family'' is an American musical sitcom created by Bernard Slade, which was broadcast in the United States from September 1970 to March 1974 on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. After the final first-run telecast on ABC in March ...
'', and, as one critic has reported, she believes her interest in the shows planted "the seeds of star adulation" that has influenced her work; and "that these cosy shows were a social glue, offering comfort to a nation traumatised by the Vietnam war and bankruptcy." Her artwork explores stardom, television shows, and fame using a wide range of media, including filmed performances, paintings and sculptures. Journalist Jessica Lack said, "Her brand of celebrity-quick art has occasionally been dismissed as lightweight, with critics overlooking or ignoring the fact that Voorsanger's guileful ability to make work that is as addictive and kitsch as ''Heat'' magazine, operates on the same plain as the world she is critiquing." She particularly is interested in portraying celebrities that she believes have real talent, increasingly relevant with the advent of reality television. In 2008's Star Struck, performers were made up as
Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
,
Billy Idol William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Idol achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X ...
,
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...
,
Devo Devo is an American new wave band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs ( Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a No. 14 ...
,
Kurt Cobain Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – ) was an American musician. He was the lead vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter, and a founding member of the grunge band Nirvana (band), Nirvana. Through his angsty songwriting and anti-establis ...
,
George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician, singer and songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Culture ...
,
Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...
,
Morrissey Steven Patrick Morrissey ( ; born 22 May 1959), known :wikt:mononym, mononymously as Morrissey, is an English singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 198 ...
,
Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...
,
David Hockney David Hockney (born 9 July 1937) is an English Painting, painter, Drawing, draughtsman, Printmaking, printmaker, Scenic design, stage designer, and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considere ...
,
Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer, songwriter, musician, and businesswoman. With over 30 million records sold worldwide, she was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix ...
and
Siouxsie Sioux Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), better known by her stage name Siouxsie Sioux (, ), is an English singer and songwriter. She came to prominence as the leader and main lyricist of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, who w ...
. The mixed media installation projected multiple films of the costumed karaoki performers singing the songs of another artist: David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust was sung by Amy Winehouse. The installation included portraits of the chosen celebrities. Voorsanger was commissioned to work on an
Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an modernism, artistic and cultural centre on The Mall (London), The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps a ...
six-month project entitled "Mystery Train." She partnered in 2008 with
Art on the Underground Art on the Underground, previously called ''Platform for Art'', is Transport for London's (TfL) contemporary public art programme. It commissions permanent and temporary artworks for London Underground, as well as commissioning artists to create ...
and Pursuing Independent Paths (PIP) to make transportation easier to navigate and encourage people with learning disabilities to explore contemporary art venues. PIP students and Voorsanger visited London's museums and galleries, had a behind-the-scenes tour of the Charing Cross Underground station and developed multiple communications media, including "Heads, Bodies, Legs" posters and costumed karaoke games. Each poster has a composite image the head, body and legs of ICA staff, London Underground staff and PIP students. Art educator, Emily Candela commented: "I have enjoyed the sense of exploration that runs through Mystery Train. Travel itself – and London's transport system in particular – served both as inspiration for our projects with Jessica Voorsanger as well as the link between our base at the ICA, PIP's centre in Westminster and the world of galleries and museums that we discovered."


Lecturer

Voorsanger has lectured since 1997 for Goldsmiths College Masters of Arts program,
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...
,
Camberwell College of Arts Camberwell College of Arts is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London, a public art and design university in London, England. The college offers further and higher education programmes, including postgraduate and PhD awards. ...
,
Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public university, public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City, London, White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design uni ...
, and
The Slade The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...
. From 1998 to 2003, she was a lecturer in pictorial arts at
Kent Institute of Art & Design The Kent Institute of Art & Design (KIAD, often ) was an art school based across three campuses in the county of Kent, in the United Kingdom. It was formed by the amalgamation of three independent colleges: Canterbury College of Art, Maidstone Co ...
. Since 2003 she has been a part-time lecturer for both the
University for the Creative Arts The University for the Creative Arts is a specialist art and design university in Southern England. It was formed in 2005 as University College for the Creative Arts at Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham, Maidstone and Rochester when the Kent Institu ...
's Fine Art and Research and
Wimbledon School of Art Wimbledon College of Arts, formerly Wimbledon School of Art, is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London, a public art university in London, England. The college specialises in theatre, screen and performance arts and design ...
's Bachelor of Arts programs. Voorsanger has been an external examiner for the University of East London since 2007.


Exhibitions

She has exhibited widely in the United Kingdom, United States and Germany. She and her husband, Patrick Brill, known as the artist Bob and Roberta Smith, exhibited together more than 2 dozen times. Some of her solo and group exhibitions are:


Solo shows

* 1998 – Jessica Voorsanger – Wilkinson Gallery, London, England * 2003 – I Think I Love You – Collective Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland * 2007 – The Agony and the Ecstasy – George Rodger Gallery, Maidstone, Kent, England * 2008 – The Woody Allen Show – Gallery 33, Berlin (closed, 2008) * 2009 – Crimefighters – Kornhäuschen, Aschaffenburg, Germany * 2009 – Eastenders – Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, England * 2011 – Peckham Heroes – Peckham Space, London, England * 2013 – Jessica Voorsanger – Worldstaronestoppopshop – Kornhäuschen, Aschaffenburg


Group exhibitions

* 1995 – Lost Property / Trill – W139, Amsterdam * 1996 – Michael Corris, "Gang Warfare" – Le Consortium, Dijon * 1998 – Channel 3 – team (gallery, inc.), New York City, NY * 2000 – Horten und SITE + Gäste - Kunstverein für die Rheinlande und Westfalen, Düsseldorf * 2001 – Teeth & Trousers – Cell Project Space, London, England * 2002 – Air Guitar – Cornerhouse, Manchester, England * 2002 – Air Guitar – Milton Keynes Gallery, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England * 2003 – Air Guitar – Angel Row Gallery, Nottingham, England (closed) * 2003 – Air Guitar – Tullie House Museum, Carlisle, Cumbria, England * 2003 – Independence – SLG South London Gallery, London, England * 2004 – The Birthday Party – Collective Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland * 2006 – Forward/Backward and Reloading – Island6 Arts Center, Shanghai * 2006 – Metropolis Rise: New Art From London – , London, England * 2007 – Art Car Boot Fair 2007 – Art Car Boot Fair, London, England * 2008 – Mapping Correspondence: Mail Art in the 21st Century – The Center for Book Arts, New York City, NY * 2008 – Starstruck – The New Art Gallery Walsall, Walsall, West Midlands, England * 2008 – The Famous, the Infamous & the Really Quite Good – Decima Gallery, London, England * 2008 – The Golden Record – Sounds of Earth – Collective Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland * 2009 – Horn of Plenty –
Viktor Wynd Viktor Wynd is a British artist, author, and curator, known for his collections of curiosities. Artwork Wynd established The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art & Natural History in London's East End, a cabinet of curiosities featuri ...
Fine Art, London, England * 2009 – Famous – Celebrity(ies) and Visual Art – Künstlerhaus Dortmund, Dortmund * 2009 – Reg Perfect and the Squeegees – Portman Gallery, London, England * 2009 – Too Much is Not Enough – Transition Gallery, London, England * 2009 – Warholesque – Richard Young Gallery, London, England * 2010 – Sold Out – Elastic Residence, London, England * 2010 – Stardust Boogie Woogie – Monika Bobinska (former Lounge Gallery), London, England * 2010 – The House of Fairy Tales – Exquisite Trove – Newlyn Art Gallery, Newlyn, England * 2010 – The House of Fairy Tales – Millennium, St. Ives, Cornwall, England * 2010 – Stardust Boogie Woogie – Art Laboratory Berlin, Berlin * 2010 – Unrealised Potential – Cornerhouse, Manchester, England * 2011 – Drawing 2011 – Biennial Fundraiser – The Drawing Room, London, England * 2011 – Fraternise – Beaconsfield, Beaconsfield, England * 2011 – Pulp Fictions – Transition Gallery, London, England * 2012 – Adventure – Herrick Gallery, London, England * 2012 – Plate – Herrick Gallery, London, England * 2012 – Tainted Love – Meter Room, Coventry, England * 2012 – Tainted Love – Transition Gallery, London, England * 2013 – Collage Principle – Kornhäuschen, Aschaffenburg


See also

* Anna Barriball, self-reflection poster campaign for
London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...
escalators


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * * * * * *


External links


Jessica Voorsanger's Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Voorsanger, Jessica 1965 births Living people Academics of Camberwell College of Arts Academics of Chelsea College of Arts Academics of Goldsmiths, University of London Academics of the Royal College of Art Academics of the Slade School of Fine Art Academics of the University for the Creative Arts Academics of the University of Sunderland Academics of Wimbledon College of Arts Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London American emigrants to England American people of Dutch descent American contemporary painters British people of Dutch descent 20th-century American painters 21st-century American painters 20th-century British painters 21st-century British painters 20th-century American women painters 21st-century American women painters