Dumas' emotionally-charged, psychologically complex figurations draw viewers in through her interpretations of love, life and pain.
Marlene Dumas (b. 1953) is a South African artist who lives and works in Amsterdam. Her work has been widely exhibited internationally, including her representation of Holland at the 1995 Venice Biennale.
While her work is largely portraiture, these works interrogate the history of portraits through medium and subject. Figures that populate her works rarely depict existing individuals, but rather, display human forms that embody a specific emotion or mindset. More broadly, her provocative paintings may reference pop culture, sexuality, current events and art history. Her work has been acquired by The Art Institute of Chicago, The Broad, Los Angeles; the National Portrait Gallery, London; The Museum of Modern Art, New York; and the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; among others.
