Left to right: "Thing: New Sculpture from Los Angeles," 2005, co-curated by James Elaine, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (photo: Josh White); "Cruzeiro do Sul [Southern Cross]" by Cildo Meiereles, 1969-1970 (courtesy Galerie Lelong, NY)

Emerging in the 1960s when international art was undergoing formal and conceptual shifts, Cildo Meireles helped galvanize theoretical discussions about art and its relationship to the larger social world in which it operates, producing provocative, poignant, technically daring, and deeply influential art from his home base in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Over four decades, Meireles became one of the most influential living artists in post-war Latin American art, combining a strong interest in ethical relationships, conceptual and philosophical explorations, and the physical and sensual experience of the viewer. In 1970, at a time when Brazil’s official media was tightly controlled by a handful of individuals, and government censors exerted control over artists in every discipline, Meireles famously created Insertions Into Ideological Circuits, printing politically charged slogans on currency and Coca-Cola bottles before returning them to circulation. In the years since this work appeared, Meireles’ prodigious oeuvre has been marked by consistent conceptual complexity and poetic use of materials, often in large-scale installation works that engage viewers on a physical level. He has had numerous international exhibitions, including solo shows at IVAM in Valencia (1995); the New Museum (1999); the Museum of Modern Art, São Paulo (2000); and Musee des Beaux Arts, Strasbourg (2003). Meireles will have a solo exhibition at the Tate Modern, London in 2008-2009.

James Elaine has supported local, national, and international emerging artists throughout his career as a curator. Since 1999, he has been the curator of the “Hammer Projects” series, a program that Elaine and Director Ann Philbin created, where he has organized over sixty-five exhibitions including three large survey shows. Prior to that, he was the curator for the Drawing Center’s “Selections” series in New York City. Elaine is particularly respected for his consistency in showcasing artists very early in their careers, often for the first time in an institutional setting, and thereby introducing the public to important new forms of expression. Among the artists to whom Elaine has given critical early support are Kara Walker, Layla Ali, Janine Antoni, Mark Bradford, Teresita Fernandez, Mark Grotjahn, Glenn Ligon, and many others. Elaine will become Adjunct Curator at the Hammer this month.