John Bock

Gribbohm, Germany, 1965 -

BiographyLives and works in Berlin.

John Bock chooses the form of lectures as artistic medium. He tries to transpose simple structures from life and artistic tasks into abstract formulae and absurd models. Psychological coping strategies for life are analyzed with mathematical methods and transferred into models of society.

In his lectures, Bock combines language, dramatic elements and sculptural objects. He acts on "stages" built from tables, cupboards or multi-level wood constructions. The objects are handmade or re-modeled accessories of the lecture, made out of clothing, electrical equipment such as hoovers and mixers, or "plastic diagrams" that illustrate his mathematical explanations. After the lecture, they are left on the stage which thus forms a "theatrical collage".

The lectures are structured by different scenes in which Bock sometimes works with (non-professional) actors; frequently he plays pop songs or classical pieces from a record player. The lecture is mostly recorded on video. The film is then integrated in the installation, documenting the lecture throughout the exhibition.

John Bock was born in Gribbohm, Germany, in 1965. He studied at the Hochschüle für bildende Künste, Hamburg, Germany. He has had major exhibitions in numerous museums and galleries worldwide including a solo show at Frac Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur, Marseille, France, 2005. He has participated in various group shows including Martian Museum of Terrestrial Art, Barbican Art Gallery, London, and Laughing in a Foreign Language, Hayward Gallery, London, both in 2008. John Bock: Maltreated Frigate, a monograph of his work, was published by Walther Koenig Ltd, 2007. He lives and works in Berlin.
http://www.sadiecoles.com/index.html

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