Zarouhie Abdalian Explained

Birth Place:	New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Known For:	Site-specific art

Zarouhie Abdalian (born 1982)^[1] is an American artist of Armenian descent, known for site-specific sculptures and installations.

Biography

Zarouhie Abdalian was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana; and is of Armenian descent.^[2] Abdalian obtained a Bachelor of Arts from Tulane University in 2003, and graduated with a Master of Fine Arts from the California College of the Arts in 2010.^[3]

Abdalian is particularly attentive to the ways in which historical processes are embedded in physical transformations of spaces. She is a 2012 recipient of the SECA Art Award.^[4] She was also a 2017–2018 Pollock-Krasner Foundation grantee.^[5] In 2020, she was awarded a Joan Mitchell Foundation grant.^[6]

Work

Abdalian's first solo exhibition in New York, at Clifton Benevento, presented a constellation of subtly altered found objects that echo the features of the gallery and of each other.

Abdalian produces site-specific sculptural works and interventions. Prior to focusing on her site-specific work, Abdalian worked in printmaking and painting. She became more interested in working directly with the elements of space after a 2004 exhibition in a non-traditional venue.^[7] Her works respond directly to architectural and outdoor spaces, using sound, light, and other natural forces to create subtle experiences that are open to multiple interpretations.^[8]

She had a 2013 show called "Zarouhie Abdalian / MATRIX 249" at the Berkeley Art Museum, with sculptures that are sensitive to the exhibition space. The sculptures were set up to use the out-of-the-way location of the gallery and aspects of the walls and space as part of the effect of the art.^[9] In 2013 she also installed a sound sculpture, "Occasional Music", in Frank H. Ogawa Plaza in Oakland, with brass bells that occasionally ring together out of sight.^{[10] [11]}

Exhibitions

Her work has been included in the following group exhibitions:

• "Put It This Way: (Re)Visions of the Hirshhorn Collection", Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 2023^[12]
• Whitney Biennial, New York, 2017
• Prospect.3, New Orleans, 2014–15
• "Audible Spaces," David Winton Bell Gallery, Providence, RI, 2014
• Eighth Berlin Biennale, Berlin, Germany, 2014
• "Nothing Beside Remains," Gertrude Contemporary, Melbourne, Australia, 2014
• CAFAM Biennale, Beijing, China, 2014
• "Shanghai Bienniale: Reactivation," Shanghai, China, 2012
• "When Attitudes Became Form Become Attitudes," CCA's Wattis Institute for Contemporary Art, San Francisco; and the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, 2012–2013
• Moscow International Biennale for Young Art, Moscow, Russia, 2012
• "Rendez-vous 12," South African National Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa, 2012
• The Istanbul Biennial, Istanbul, Turkey, 2011

She has had solo exhibitions of her work at the following venues:

• "Bells for Baku, London, Louisiana", Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, 2023^[13]
• "Chanson du ricochet", MASS MoCA, 2016–2021^[14]
• "Zarouhie Abdalian: A History," Altman Siegel, San Francisco, 2017^[15]
• "Work," LAXART, Los Angeles, 2017^[16]
• "A Betrayal," Clifton Benevento, New York, 2016^[17]
• "An Overture," Altman Siegel, San Francisco, 2014^[18]
• "Zarouhie Abdalian / MATRIX 249," Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, 2013^[19]

References

1. News: Zarouhie Abdalian. 2014-03-04. Exploratorium. 2017-04-20.
2. Pocock. Antonia. May 2016. Zarouhie Abdalian: First Look. Art in America.
3. Web site: A Site to Behold: Works by Zarouhie Abdalian. www.cca.edu. California College of the Arts. 17 February 2017. 5 November 2012.
4. Web site: 2012 SECA Art Award. 2015-03-07. sfmoma.org.
5. Web site: Selvin. Claire. 2018-10-10. Pollock-Krasner Foundation Names 2017–18 Grantees, Gives $100,000 to Madison Square Park Conservancy. 2019-08-09. ARTnews. en-US.
6. Web site: 2020-10-21 . Zarouhie Abdalian . 2023-08-18 . Joan Mitchell Foundation . en.
7. Web site: When Attitudes Became Form Become Attitudes: Will Rogan, Amalia Pica, and Zarouhie Abdalian. Glass. Liz. San Francisco Arts Quarterly.
8. Web site: Altering the Everyday: An Interview with Zarouhie Abdalian. Tatum. Charlie. March 8, 2018. Pelican Bomb.
9. News: Zarouhie Abdalian / MATRIX 249. Brown. A. Will. October 23, 2013. Art Practical. March 9, 2015.
10. News: Until I Die There Will Be Sounds: Zarouhie Abdalian at Berkeley Art Museum. Seikaly. Roula. August 11, 2013. KQED. March 9, 2015.
11. News: SFMOMA displays artworks in diverse settings. Baker. Kenneth. September 13, 2013. SFGate. March 9, 2015.
12. Web site: Put It This Way: (Re)Visions of the Hirshhorn Collection . 2023-08-18 . Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Smithsonian . en.
13. Web site: Zarouhie Abdalian 10 February - 18 March 2023 . 2023-08-18 . Pippy Houldsworth Gallery . en.
14. Web site: Zarouhie Abdalian Chanson du ricochet . 2023-08-18 . MASS MoCA . en-US.
15. Web site: Zarouhie Abdalian: To History. Minnesota Street Project. 30 October 2017 . en. 2018-03-18.
16. Web site: Zarouhie Abdalian: Work. LAXART. 2018-03-18.
17. Web site: Zarouhie Abdalian: A Betrayal. Clifton Benevento. 4 January 2016 . 2018-03-18.
18. News: Trio of Artists Finds Innovative Home in New Mills College Residency. 2015-01-22. Business Wire. 2018-03-18. en.
19. Web site: Zarouhie Abdalian / MATRIX 249. Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive. 2018-03-18.