virtually tour bruce nauman's retrospective exhibition at tate modern

in october 2020, tate modern opened a new exhibition exploring the full breadth of bruce nauman’s ground-breaking work as an artist. although the exhibit is now closed due to COVID-19 restrictions, it is scheduled to remain on view until february 2021, and could potentially be extended further. described as ‘a restlessly inventive artist’, bruce nauman has employed a wide range of media including sculpture, sound, film, video and neon. since the late 1960s, he has continually tested and reinvented what an artwork can be by reshaping traditional forms and creating new ones. he is now widely recognized as one of the most innovative and influential artists of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

installation view of bruce nauman at tate modern featuring anthro/socio (rinde spinning) 1992. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

through more than 40 works, the exhibition at tate modern — simply titled ‘bruce nauman’ — explores the distinctive themes that have preoccupied nauman during his 50-year career. unfolding across a sequence of immersive installations inviting deep viewer engagement, the show acknowledges how nauman’s works contrast the instant gratification of today’s screen-based information and entertainment culture.

bruce nauman | the true artist helps the world by revealing mystic truths (window or wall sign) 1967 | neon tubing with clear glass tubing suspension frame | 1499 x 1397 x 51 mm | kunstmuseum basel | © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020, courtesy sperone westwater, new york

the exhibition also reveals how nauman has transformed the way we think about art by exploring our understanding of language and our perception of our physical and psychological place in the world. view more of the works on display below and stay tuned for updates on the exhibit’s reopening here.

installation view of bruce nauman at tate modern featuring human nature/knows doesn’t know 1983/1986. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

installation view of bruce nauman at tate modern featuring human nature/knows doesn’t know 1983/1986. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

installation view of bruce nauman at tate modern featuring one hundred live and die 1984. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork (c) bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

bruce nauman | one hundred live and die 1984 | neon tubing with clear glass tubing on metal monolith | 299.7 x 335.9 x 53.3. | collection benesse holdings, inc./benesse house museum, naoshima | © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020, courtesy sperone westwater, new york

installation view of bruce nauman at tate modern featuring black marble under yellow light 1987. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

bruce nauman | black marble under yellow light 1987 | light installation and black marble blocks | 380 x 5000 x 6000 mm | ‘la caixa’ collection. contemporary art © nacho lópez © ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

installation view of bruce nauman at tate modern featuring falls, pratfalls and sleights of hand (clean version) 1992. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

bruce nauman | falls, pratfalls and sleights of hand (clean version) 1993  | kunstmuseum wolfsburg | © ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

installation view of bruce nauman at tate modern featuring double steel cage piece 1974. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

bruce nauman | good boy bad boy 1985 | video, 2 monitors, colour and audio (mono) | 60 min, 52sec | tate: purchased 1994 | © ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020 

installation view of bruce nauman washing hands normal 1996 at tate modern. photograph by tate photography (matt greenwood). artwork (c) bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS london 2020

bruce nauman | a cast of the space under my chair 1965–1968 | concrete | 445 x 391 x 371 mm | kröller-müller museum, otterlo, the netherlands. formerly in the visser collection. purchased with support from the mondriaan foundation | © ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020

bruce nauman | clown torture 1987 | four channel video with sound (two projections, four monitors), approximately one-hour loop | the art institute of chicago, watson f. blair prize, wilson l. mead, and twentieth-century purchase funds; through prior gift of joseph winterbotham; gift of lannan foundation, 1997.162 | © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020, courtesy sperone westwater, new york

bruce nauman | my name as though it were written on the surface of the moon 1968 | neon tubing with clear glass tubing suspension frame, in four parts | 279 x 5182 x 51 mm | collection stedelijk museum amsterdam | © bruce nauman / ARS, NY and DACS, london 2020, courtesy sperone westwater, new york

bruce nauman | walking in an exaggerated manner around the perimeter of a square 1967–1968 | 16mm film on video, projected, black and white, sound | 10min | exhibition file courtesy electronic arts intermix (EAI), new york | © ARS, NY and DACS,, london 2020 

portrait | bruce nuaman | photograph: koos breukel | © 2020 bruce nauman / DACS, london, courtesy sperone westwater, new york

exhibition info:

name: bruce nauman
location: tate modern, london, UK
original dates: october 7, 2020 – february 21, 2021
status: the museum is currently closed — see updates here
organization: tate modern and stedelijk museum amsterdam in collaboration with pirelli hangarbicocca, milan
curation: andrea lissoni, former senior curator (international art), film, tate modern, nicholas serota, former director, tate, katy wan, assistant curator, tate modern, leontine coelewij, curator contemporary art and martijn van nieuwenhuyzen, former curator contemporary art stedelijk museum amsterdam