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excerpts from a few of Bill Burns' recent works - involving carving the names of individuals (art dealers primarily) who have shaped the landscape of the art world/market in particular ways. The work above, the photograph, is called 'Meeting of the Board' - below is a recent installation from one of his gallery shows.
 Bird Radio and the Eames Chair Lounge (2002-2011) and Bird Radio for Afghanistan (2010) consist of a set of jerry-rigged bird calls, a video, a radio transmitter, a microphone, a series of drawings, blueprints, photographs and a 52 page guide book.
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About the Artist
Bill Burns is an artist and writer living in Toronto. His work about animals and civil society has been shown in solo projects Institute of Contemporary Arts, London (2008), Cristina Enea Foundation, San Sebastian, Spain (2010) and the KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin (2007) and the Wellcome Trust, London (2002) as well as in major thematic shows at the Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul (2002); the Kunsthallen Nikolaj, Copenhagen (2010) and the Museum of Modern Art, New York (2006).
His books and essays include When Pain Strikes, an anthology about pain and its relief, (University of Minnesota Press,, 1999); Bird Radio, (KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin, Germany, 2007); The Guide to the Flora and Fauna Information Station, (ICA, London, England, 2008); Three Books and an Audio CD About Plants and Animals and War ; Dogs and Boats and Airplanes told in the form of Ivan the Terrible, (Space Poetry, Copenhagen, Denmark, 2011). His books and editions are included in collections around the world including the MoMA, New York, Tate Britain, London and Cabinet de estampes, Geneva.His books, multiples and photographs are included in several collections including the Tate Britain (London), the Victoria & Albert Museum (London), the Museum of Modern Art (New York), The Art Institute of Chicago (IL) and the Getty Center (Los Angeles, CA).
Bill Burns was born in Regina, Saskatchewan in 1957 and has lived and worked mostly in Vancouver, Toronto and London, England. His work consists mainly of sculpture, photographs, multiples, books and reworkings of everyday materials. He is known for his Safety Gear for Small Animals (SGSA) series, and the accompanying museum, where gear for animals and guides on how to assist them are displayed. [1] Using the conventions of both traditional museum display and print-media marketing, Burns' work spotlights minuscule safety vests, work gloves, bullet-proof vests, U.V. goggles and respirators, and acts as a commentary about human stewardship of the environment. In 2002 he began a project called Dogs and Boats and Airplanes. The project includes an extensive body of photographs as well as a children's choir whose entire repertoire consists of the sounds of dogs and boats and airplanes.
Bill Burns has published several books including When Pain Strikes, a critical anthology about pain and pain relief, published by the University of Minnesota Press in 1999. Other book titles include Analgesia (1993), How to Help Animals Escape from Degraded Habitats (1996) and Urban Fauna Information Station (2002) and Safety Gear for Small Animals (2005). Burns has also published dozens of guides, posters, and editions. His book works and artists' editions are included in major museum collections throughout the world.
Burns' other works include, "Boilersuits for Primates" a collection of all the items that prisoners receive when they arrive at Guantanamo Bay . [2] and "How to Help Animals Escape from Natural History" a series of photographs depicting animals taking leave of natural history books.
Burns has received commissions and awards from l'APAPE in France, the Danish Arts Agency, the Pollock-Krasner Foundation and the Wellcome Trust. His 2002 project "Everything I Could Buy on eBay About Malaria" at the Wellcome Trust in London, England is considered a seminal work in the area of electronic collecting. In 2005 and 2006 Burns exhibited his series of safety gear and rescue and triage tent works in the groundbreaking exhibition "Safe: Design Takes on Risk" curated by Paula Antoinelli at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. His animal rescue works have also been exhibited at the Seoul Museum of Art in Seoul, Korea and El Basilisco in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Burns participated in the Forum Arte y Vida at the Havana Bienal in Havana, Cuba in 2003 and at the Bienal del Fin del Mundo in Ushuaia, Argentina in 2007.
Burns studied at Goldsmiths College at the University of London, England.
http://www.billburns.ca
http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/2005/safe/safe.html
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please note: 'mottling' on surface of book is due to lighting only.
