Kennedy Yanko

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Kennedy Yanko
Portrait - kennedy yanko by noemad.jpg
Born1988 (age 36–37)
Saint Louis, Missouri, US
Occupation(s)Painter, sculptor, installation artist

Kennedy Yanko (born October 21, 1988, in St. Louis, Missouri) [1] [2] is an American sculptor, painter, and installation artist known for working with "paint skins" and found metal. [3] Yanko sources discarded objects and other material from salvage yards and manipulates or modifies their form, shape, or structure into her vision. Her abstract work draws upon surrealism, abstract expressionism and physical austerities, as well as her background in performance art. [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Work

To create "paint skins", Yanko pours large amounts of paint and lets it dry into a tarp-like material. From there, she sculpts the paint skin, using her whole body to manipulate the heavy sheet of paint. The paint skin thus becomes a structural material not dissimilar from the metal she utilizes in her sculptures. At times, the two materials are indistinguishable. [6]

In 2023, she presented the solo exhibition Kennedy Yanko: Tilted Lift at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, as part of this institution's Mike Kelley Mobile Homestead lawn program. [7] In 2024, the Pérez Art Museum Miami, acquired her wild wild country (2023) as part of its PAMM Fund for Black Art. [8]

In 2025 Yanko had exhibitions at Salon 94 gallery (Kennedy Yanko: Retro Future) and James Cohan gallery (Kennedy Yanko: Epithets). [9] Yanko, stated that Epithets was, "about looking at the layers, the things beneath the veil. It was about exploring the parts of ourselves that we struggle to share with the world, the things we have trouble accepting." She continues, "I wanted to create a visual language that reflects the ooziness, the scariness, and the raw, sometimes ugly, experience of stepping into that space—of moving through it and existing within it." [10]

Public art

In 2019, Yanko installed her first public sculpture, titled 3 WAYS, as part of the Poydras Corridor Sculpture Exhibition, [11] funded by the Helis Foundation, in New Orleans. [12]

Residencies

Public collections

References

  1. 1 2 Ologundudu, Folasade (2021-05-04). "Kennedy Yanko: Postcapitalist Desire". The Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  2. ↑ Rosier, J. Howard (October 29, 2019). "Kennedy Yanko at Kavi Gupta Gallery | Elizabeth St". www.artforum.com. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  3. 1 2 Huzenis, Ella (2020-10-06). "Kennedy Yanko's Sculptures Are a Certain Kind of Woman". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  4. ↑ Waddoups, Ryan (2020-10-20). "Kennedy Yanko Isn't Afraid to Take Up Space". SURFACE. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  5. ↑ "Meet the Buzzy Brooklyn Artist Creating Powerful Sculptures out of Found Materials". Galerie. 2023-03-17. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  6. ↑ Miller, Michelle (2021-12-04). "Artist Kennedy Yanko makes a name for herself at the return of Art Basel Miami". CBS News .
  7. ↑ mocad (2023-03-21). "KENNEDY YANKO: TILTED LIFT". MOCAD. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  8. 1 2 "Pérez Art Museum Miami Announces Acquisition of Artworks by Isaac Julien and Kennedy Yanko at Eleventh Annual Art + Soul Celebration • Pérez Art Museum Miami". Pérez Art Museum Miami. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  9. ↑ Kelly, Brian P. "David Altmejd and Kennedy Yanko: Sculpting the Future". WSJ. Retrieved 2025-07-04.
  10. ↑ Giller, Gwyneth (2025-04-15). "Kennedy Yanko Lets Her Firecracker Pop". ELEPHANT. Retrieved 2025-10-30.
  11. ↑ Maccash, Doug (3 October 2019). "Five new mod sculptures on Poydras Street are 'greatest drive-by art exhibit'". NOLA.com. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  12. ↑ "Public Art - The Helis Foundation Advancing Access to the Arts in NOLA". The Helis Foundation. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  13. ↑ "Kennedy Yanko". Fountainhead. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  14. 1 2 3 "Learn more about Kennedy Yanko's past work and forthcoming shows". Kennedy Yanko. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
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