Born in Paris and currently based in Berlin, Cyprien Gaillard has been hailed as a New Romantic for the brooding poetry of his films, photographs, collages, sculptures and performances – not to mention his looks. His art has often been compared with that of Robert Smithson for its dual currents of beauty and brutalism. History and ruination are the themes of Artefacts (2011) – shown recently at MoMA PS1 – which combines scenes shot on the artist’s iPhone in Iraq’s Babylon province and at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. Gaillard has won several major art gongs, including the the Prix Marcel Duchamp in 2010 and Preis der Nationalgalerie für junge Kunst in 2011.
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