Jill Greenberg b. 1967, Montreal. American & Canadian
Jill Greenberg is an internationally renowned artist and photographer whose work is instantly recognizable due to her personally executed postproduction and her mastery of studio lighting. Since the age of 10, Jill has staged photographs and created characters using the mediums of drawing, painting, sculpture, film and photography.
Her background in illustration and painting is evident in her work, and her background in semiotics and art history is evident in the subject matter she explores. An early adopter of digital effects, Greenberg has developed a world that is more intense and visceral than the one in which we actually reside. Jill Greenberg creates portraits that seize our attention and tug at our emotions.
Best known for her infamous series, "End Times," which struck a nerve in its exploration of environmental themes exploiting the raw emotion of toddlers unable to use their words. Additionally, she is recognized for her portrait work of animals, exploring the trope of studio and celebrity portraiture as well as power dynamics between viewer and subject, humans and animals. These series were photographed on medium format film, then drum scanned, and finally enhanced with digital “hand painting” techniques. Both "Glass Ceiling," and "Horse," marked a return to the 80's feminist theory that inspired her senior thesis, "The Female Object" while an art student at RISD in the 80's. The “Horse” series investigated the persistent dual gender representations as well as parallels with the treatment of women. “Glass Ceiling” toyed with candy colored, luscious feminine hues which belied the violent undertones telegraphed by Greenberg rendering professional swimmers appearing headless and incapacitated, shot in full SCUBA gear at the bottom of a Culver City swimming pool.
As a working photographer she travails to straddle the line between the commissioned work which funds her fine art practice. Further, her unique gaze as a working commercial female photographer, when directed back at her gallery work, allows a constant interrogation of the image politics and methodologies at work in a culture where pictures have become the de facto universal language. Greenberg has been using Photoshop in 1990: early digital JPEG drawings and body part scans were the basis of her application to the Whitney Program for Independent Study in 1993. In 1997, her wide-angle, forced perspective fun-filled images captured the zeitgeist, and were much imitated. In 2001 Greenberg developed a lighting diagram for her simian portraits, and now the shiny, haloed 7-light studio technique have become the go-to art school photography assignment; the set-up was obsessively deconstructed and mimicked in DIY YouTube tutorials spanning the globe.
4 monographs have been released: "Monkey Portraits*" and "Bear Portraits" published by Little, Brown. In 2012, Rizzoli published the large format glossy "Horses". In 2013, TF Editores and DAP published her seminal series, "End Times" with essays by Bill Moyers, and Jo-Ann Conklin of Brown University. Recent exhibitions include “’Paintings’” in New York, and Toronto, "End Times" and Monkey "Portraits" in Amsterdam, and a major mid-career survey at Stockholm's Fotografiska. “Commentary and Dissent,” in 2012, in Culver City, Los Angeles was a body of work poking fun simultaneously at political art and advertising tropes.
Greenberg’s recent relocation back to New York City in 2013, inspired the “Paintings” series: an exploration of the dialogue between photography and painting. She has continued this as well as a recent series, “Masculinity/Glitch” and well as two short films about sexual harassment in the workplace since 2015, “Honeypot,” a drama and “Feminist Pigs” a comedy.
Selected Exhibitions:
2017 "Indecisive Moment" Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN "Like a Horse" Group Show, Fotografiska, Stockholm, Sweden "Selected works" Imago Gallery, Palm Desert, California "Beast" Bau-xi Photo, Toronto, Canada 2016 “Indecisive Moment" Suwon Photography Festival, Suwon, South Korea “Aperture Summer Open: Photography Is Magic” Aperture Foundation, New York City “Beauty and the Beast: The Animal in Photography” MoPA, San Diego “Paintings” Bau-Xi Photo, Featured Exhibition, Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival “Headshots: Contemporary Photographic Portraiture,” ClampArt, New York City “Norwood Club” Norwood Club, New York City 2015 “Wet Panties” Southampton, New York “Australian and International Contemporary Photography,” Olsen Irwin Gallery, Sydney, “Painting” ClampArt, New York City “The Stand-Ins” MoPLA, Los Angeles “The Growth of a Collection Part 2 (2002-2014)” Southeast Museum of Photography “New Cats in Art Photography” Group show, Humble Arts Foundation 2014 “Monkey Portraits and End Times,” Jaski Art Gallery, Amsterdam, The Netherlands “Cat Art Show” Los Angeles, California “Horse” O’Born Contemporary, Toronto, Canada “Welcome to LA/Please Come Again” LAX Airport, Los Angeles 2013 “Jill Greenberg: Work 2001-2011,” Fotografiska, Stockholm, Sweden “FACE it,” Rockland Center for the Arts, West Nyack, New York “Photo 13: Jill Greenberg, Bastienne Schmidt, and Roger Ricco,” Kenise Barnes Fine Art, 2012 “Horses” Jaski Art Gallery, Amsterdam, The Netherlands “Horses” ClampArt, New York City “Legitimate Rape: Political Art in 2012,” Katherine Cone Gallery, Los Angeles “Dark Blue: The Water as Protagonist,” Haggerty Museum of Art, Milwaukee, Wisconsin “America Rules!,” West Collection, Collegeville, Pennsylvania Curated by Drew Leshko “Chungmuro Photo Festival 2012” Seoul, South Korea “Getxophoto Festival 2012: In Praise of Childhood,” Bilbao, Spain “Full of Grace,” Palm Beach Photographic Centre, West Palm Beach (Curated by Ray Merritt) “Glass Ceiling,” O’Born Contemporary, Toronto “Commentary and Dissent,” Katherine Cone Gallery, Los Angeles 2011 “Glass Ceiling,” Hagedorn Foundation Gallery (Atlanta Celebrates Photography) “Glass Slipper” Grey Area, Pulse Los Angeles “American Girl Doll” Billboard LAXART, Pacific Standard Time, Los Angeles “(Un)Natural Histories,” Kemper Museum, Kansas City, Missouri “2011 Juried Art Show,” The SoFA Gallery / Grunwald Gallery of Art, The Kinsey Institute, “Glass Ceiling,” ClampArt, New York City “Horse—Preview,” ClampArt, New York City “Open Daybook Project Exhibit,” LACE, Los Angeles “Ursine,” Jaski Art Gallery, Amsterdam, The Netherlands 2010 “Humanimal,” Portsmouth Museum of Art, Portsmouth, New Hampshire “Exposed: Photography Group Show,” Morgan Lehman Gallery, Lakeville, Connecticut “Bumpy Ride,” MACRO Future, Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, in conjunction with FotoGrafia, Rome “Heads or Tails,” Mary Ryan Gallery, New York “Proof,” Catherine Edelman Gallery, Chicago, Illinois “Museum of Unnatural History ClampArt, New York “SHOOT!,” Imago Galleries, Palm Desert, California “Jill Greenberg,” acte2galerie, Paris, France “Jill Greenberg: Monkey Portraits,”John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Wisconsin 2009 “Jill Greenberg: New Bears,” ClampArt, New York “Bear Portraits,” Guy Hepner, Los Angeles “Jill Greenberg: Monkey Portraits,” National Science Foundation, Arlington, Virginia “Staged,” Michelle Mosko Fine Art, Denver, Colorado “18 Mammals,” Carroll Square Gallery, Washington, DC “Intelligent Design: Interspecies Art,” Sweeny Gallery, UC Riverside, California “Animal Attraction,” Ambient Art Projects, Las Vegas, Nevada “Wild Things,” Stricola Contemporary, New York City (Curated by Greg Garry) “Jill Greenberg: Monkeys and Bears,” Arvada Center for the Arts, Arvada, Colorado “Jill Greenberg: Monkeys and Bears,” Michele Mosko Fine Art, Denver, Colorado “Kids Behaving Badly,” ClampArt, New York City “Intimacy & Seduction,” The Madden Museum, Greenwood Village, Colorado “Iris Slide Show Night,” Annenberg Foundation Photography Space, Los Angeles, California 2008 “Transfigure,” Kemper Museum, Kansas City, Missouri “Play/Quatre Jeux,” O’Born Contemporary, Toronto, Canada “Jill Greenberg: Photographs,” Southeast Museum for Photography, Daytona Beach, Florida “Jill Greenberg: Monkey Portraits,” Eleanor London Cote-St-Luc Public Library, Montreal, Canada “Jill Greenberg: Monkey Portraits,” National Academy of Sciences, National Academy’s Upstairs Gallery, Washington DC “The Body is Art” Michele Mosko Fine Art, Denver, Colorado 2007 “Empty Nest: The Changing Face of Childhood in Art, 1880 to the Present,” Nathan A. Bernstein & Co. Ltd., New York City (Curated by Lowell Pettit) “Jill Greenberg,” Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles “Jill Greenberg: Ursine,” ClampArt, New York City “Jill Greenberg: End Times,” ClampArt, New York City [In the Project Room] “Eat the Food!,” Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto (Curated by Camilla Singh) “Kids: Julie Blackmon, Ruud van Empel, Jill Greenberg, “David Winton Bell Gallery, List Art Center, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island (Curated by Jo-Ann Conklin) “Jill Greenberg: Monkey Portraits,” National Academy of Sciences, Keller Gallery, Washington DC “The Evolution of the Digital Portrait,” ClampArt, New York City "Ominous Atmosphere," Heather Marx Gallery, San Francisco (Co-curated by Jeff Dauber) “End Times,” Greenaway Art Gallery, Adelaide, Australia “Human in Animals,” Judi Rotenberg Gallery, Boston “Why Look at Animals,” Artspace, New Haven, Connecticut (Curated by Denise Markonish) 2006 “Animal House,” Islip Art Museum, East Islip, New York (Curated Karen Shaw) “It’s All About Me,” Chelsea Art Museum, New York City “Jill Greenberg: Monkey Portraits,” ClampArt, New York City “End Times,” Paul Kopeikin Gallery, Los Angeles “Offspring,” Boston University Art Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts 2005 “Animal Tales”, DFN Gallery, New York City 2004 “Monkey Portraits,” Paul Kopeikin Gallery, Los Angeles 1999 “Christmas Show,” American Fine Art, New York City 1997 “Art, Design, and Barbie: The Evolution of a Cultural Icon,” Montreal Museum of Decorative Arts, Montreal (Curated by Valerie Steele) 1996 “Art, Design, and Barbie: The Evolution of a Cultural Icon,” Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan (Curated by Valerie Steele) “Art, Design, and Barbie: The Evolution of a Cultural Icon,” Los Angeles Central Library, Los Angeles (Curated by Valerie Steele) 1995 “Art, Design, and Barbie: The Evolution of a Cultural Icon,” World Financial Center, Liberty Street Gallery, New York City (Curated by Valerie Steele)
Education:
1989 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Photography, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island. Graduated with Honors. 1988 “Semiotics in Media,” coursework with Mary Anne Doane, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island. 1985 Winner: Traub Scholarship from Andover Public High School for Fine Art 1985 Parsons School of Design, Photography in Paris, Summer Session 1984 Pre-College at RISD, Illustration 1977-80 Cranbrook Schools, Bloomfield Hills MI : Brookside & Kingswood
Jill is on the Rhode Island School of Design Presidential Advisory Board
Awards:
2019 Graphis Poster Annual 2018 Graphis Advertising Annual - Gold Graphis Photo Annual - Gold 2017 Graphis Advertising Annual - Silver 2016 Graphis Advertising Annual - Gold Graphis Poster Annual - Merit 2015 PDN Photo Annual Graphis Advertising Annual - Silver 2014 Graphis Photography Annual 2013 The Society of Publication Designers Cover of the Day (from a shoot for Entertainment Weekly) Graphis Photography Annual - Platinum 2012 AI-AP (American Illustration-American Photography), The Archive (Motion Category) AP28 American Photography (“Thomas Jane Mapplethorpe” homage) 2011 American Photographic Artists Award Winner (Second Place in Fine Art Category) Key Art Awards Transit Campaign (“One Born Every Minute”) The Society of Publication Designers Cover of the Day (from a shoot for Chakota Magazine) 2010 AP26 American Photography (“Glenn Beck” for GQ and “Dog” for O Magazine) PDN PIX Digital Imaging (Glass Ceiling) Graphis Design Annual - Platinum 2009 AP25 American Photography PDN PIX Digital Imaging x3 The Society for Publication Designers x4 The Society of Publication Designers (Gold Medal for “Violence of the Lambs” for GQ) 2008 New York Photo Awards (Advertising) The Society of Publication Designers (Merit Award for Wired) The Society of Publication Designers (Merit Award for GQ) The Society of Publication Designers (Merit Award for Women’s Health) The Society of Publication Designers (Merit Award for Glamour) 2007 The Society of Publication Designers (Silver Medal) AP23 American Photography 2006 Communications Arts (Award of Excellence) PDN/Nikon (Print Placement, 2nd Place) PDN/Nikon (Direct Mail Award, 1st Place) 2005 PDN/Nikon (Self Promotion, 2nd Place) 2004 PDN/Nikon (Self Promotion, 2nd Place) 1997 Communications Arts (Award of Excellence)
Lectures and Artist Talks:
2018 TEDX “The Female Lens” 2018 Director Q&A at New York No Limit Film Festival for “Honeypot” 2017 Artist Panel “The Indecisive Moment”, Purdue University, Indiana 2014 Bear, DePaul College of LAS, Chicago, Illinois 2011 Women’s Focus Week Lecture, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island Keynote Speaker at Women’s Focus Week; Visiting Artist Critic Senior Thesis Class Business of Photography Lecture, ArtCenter, Pasadena Annenberg Center for Photography, Beauty Culture, I 2010 Semi-Permanent, Sydney, Australia with FBI Radio interview “Unsung Heroes of the American West,” Speakeasy at Society of Publication Designers, Los Angeles, California 2009 “Make/Think,” AIGA Biennial Design Conference, Memphis, Tennessee “99% Conference,” Behance, New York City 2008 “On the Media,” National Public Radio EFTI, School of Photography and Image Technology, Madrid, Spain Southeastern Museum of Photography, Daytona Beach, Florida 2007 Good Morning America, interview with Diane Sawyer “Julie Blackmon and Jill Greenberg: In Conversations with Jo-Ann Conklin, Director, Bell Gallery,” Brown University, November 2, 2007 “National Geographic Magazine Photography Seminar, 2007,” National Geographic, January 11, 2007. 2006 “Jill Greenberg / Parson’s Lecture,” Aperture Foundation, October 26, 2006
Lectures and Artist Talks:
2017 "Art Miami," Miami, (Jaski Gallery) 2015 “No Commission Art Fair” Miami “Pan Art Fair” Amsterdam, Netherlands [Jaski] 2014 “Zona Maco,” Mexico City, Mexico 2013 “Scope at Art Basel,” Switzerland 2012 “Houston Fine Art Fair,” Houston [ClampArt] 2011 “Toronto International Art Fair,” Toronto [O’Born Contemporary] “Pulse LA,” Los Angeles [ClampArt] 2010 “aipad,” New York [Project5, ClampArt] 2009 “Photo LA,” Los Angeles [ClampArt] 2008 “Art Miami,” Miami [ClampArt] “Photo LA,” Los Angeles [ClampArt] 2007 “Art Miami,” Miami [ClampArt] “Photo LA,” Los Angeles [ClampArt] 2006 “Photo Miami,” Miami [ClampArt] “Photo NY,” New York City [ClampArt] “Scope” New York City [PKG] “AIPAD: The Photography Show,” New York City [PKG] “Art LA,” Los Angeles [PKG] “Photo LA,” Los Angeles [PKG] 2005 “Pulse,” Miami [PKG] “AAF Contemporary Fair,” New York City [PKG] “Photo SF,” San Francisco [PKG]
Selected Articles and Reviews:
2014 “Cover Artist Jill Greenberg,” ASMP (Spring 2014) interview article and images 2011 “Sunset Blvd. Billboard Exhibits L.A. Photographer’s Work” LAIST (September 29, 2011) “Dive Into Jill Greenberg’s ‘Glass Ceiling’ Photography,” Huffington Post (October 6, 2011) “Jill Greenberg, Glass Ceiling @ClampArt,” DLK Collection (October 5, 2011) Susan Kirschbaum, “Jill Greenberg’s ‘Glass Ceiling’,” Whitewall Magazine (June 17, 2011) article and images “Picture Perfect,” Professional Photographer (May 2011) interview article and images “Creative Brief: The Manipulator,” Brief Magazine (Spring 2011) interview article and images “Swimsuit Issue,” Dear Dave, Summer 2011, edited by Stephen Frailey. 2010 “Portrait Special,” foto Magazin (May 2010) cover image and articlePaul Wombell, “Non Gliresta Che Piangere,” Rolling Stone Italia, article and image (September 2010) Francesca Giuliani, “Fotografia,” La Repubblica: Roma, article and image (September 23, 2010) “lo sguardo rivolto al futuro del FotoGrafia Festival di Roma, Corriere Della Sera [Italy] (September 23, 2010) Lauretta Colonnelli, “Scatti sul futuro, temibile,” Corriere Della Sera: Roma (September 24, 2010) “Immagini in ‘visione’,” Il Messaggero: Roma, (September 24, 2010) Alberto Fiorillo, “Quando la fotografia vuole catturare il futuro,” Il Venerdi di Repubblica (September 24, 2010) “Futurspectives,” il manifesto (September 24, 2010) Federico Aragona, “Occhi aperti sul Futuro,” Terra, article and image ((September 24, 2010) Manuela de Leonardis, “Il Futuro Della Fotografia,” exibart.com (September 2010) “Prospettive Future,” VIC (September 2010) Il Manifesto (September 2010) “Los sguardo sul festival,” Roma C’e’, article and images (September 2010) “Il futuro in un clic,” L’Espresso [print and online], article and image (September 23, 2010) Federico Castelli Gattinara, “Macro FotoGrafia tutta al Testasccio,” Il Giornale Dell’arte (September 2010) Flavia Montecchi, “Futurespective,” Fotograhare (October 2010) “Die Kunst des Portraits,” fotoMagazin (May 2010) pp. 12 - 13 “Interview with photographer Jill Greenberg,” boudist.com (March 16, 2010) 2009 Denver Daily News, article with image (August 13, 2009) Le Monde 2, cover image (November 2009) “Making Glenn Beck Cry – Or The Tears of a Clown,” Daily Kos (June 17, 2009) “Own This City,” Time Out New York (November 2009) Redbook (Winter 2009) 2008 artdaily.org (September 6, 2008) New York Spaces, illus. p. 52 Le Monde 2, Cover image and text (July 2008) “Enqête sur les dangers de la télé au berceau,” La Grande Enquête (July 2008) “House Call: Charity Case,” Time Out New York (June 26 – July 2, 2008) “How to Make Poptimistic Photo-Anime,” New York Magazine (April 21, 2008) Washington Post Review, Arts & Entertainment (February 19, 2008) Jerusalem Post, Arts & Entertainment (February 19, 2008) Photo District News, “Who’s Shooting What: Animal Planet Campaign” (February 14, 2008) Rachael Beckman, “Simon Cowell, Meet Simian Scowl,” The Washington Post (January 27, 2008) ISSUES in Science and Technology (Winter 2008) 2007 “Just Kidding,” British Journal of Photography (December 2007) Greg Cook, “The kids aren’t all right: Unsettling photographs at the Bell Gallery,” The Phoenix (November 13, 2007), illus. Bill Van Siclen, “’Kids’ provides a different look at children,” The Providence Journal (November 8, 2007) The New York Sun: Arts (November 2007) Art New England: Contemporary Art and Culture (October/November 2007) The New Yorker: The Arts Issue (October 2007) Washington Square News (October 2007) Wired, Blog Network: “Underwire” (October 2007) The Morning News (October 2007) Milk (October 2007) Cool Hunting (October 2007) Manhattan Users Guide.com (October 2007) Hungry Hyaena: Gallery Report (October 2007) The New Republic, Cover Art (September 2007) Photo District News: “The Fine Arts Photography Issue” (September 2007) Lemon No.3: “A Clockwork Lemon” (August 2007) The Boston Globe (July 26, 2007) SPD 42nd Publication Design Annual, Cover Art (2006) Le Monde (May 23, 2007) Lemon (May 2007) idpure (May 2007) 944 Magazine (February 2007) Yale Daily News.com (February 2007) ConnecticutCentral.com (February 2007) Art & Auction (February 2007) AdelaideNow… (March 2007) Cool Hunting (February 2007) View, Deutschland (January 2007) 2006 ZOOZOOM.com (December 2006) Vanity Fair Deutschland (November 2006) BusinessWeek (November 27, 2006) ZOOZOOM.com (November 2006) Cool Hunting (September 20, 2006) Time Out New York (November 9, 2006) Photo, France (November 2006) The New Yorker (November 6, 2006) The New York Sun (October 26, 2006) Photo Media (Fall 2006) Leica World (November 2006) The Ticker (October 23, 2006) Entertainment Weekly (October 2006) Harper’s (September 2006) The London Sunday Times, United Kingdom (August 2006) National Post, Canada (August 2006) Donna Magazine, Italy (August 2006) Chicago Tribune (July 2006) Los Angeles Sunday Times (July 2006) American Photo (July 2006) The Guardian, United Kingdom (July 2006) El Mundo Newspaper, Spain (July 2006) Moving Picture Magazine (June 2006) Artkrush (May 2006) Angeleno Magazine (April 2006) 2004 Paper (November 2004) Los Angles Magazine (November 2004) In Style (November 2004) The New Yorker (October 2004) LIFE (October 2004) Daily Candy (October 2004) Zoom (September 2004) The Walrus (September 2004) Black + White (September 2004) 2002 Creativity (February 2002) 1999 Studio Photography & Design (April 1999) 1998 PDN – Photo District News (May 1998) 1997 American Photo (November 1997)
Books and Publications
Horses (Rizzoli: New York, 2012) End Times (TF Editores, Madrid & D.A.P. 2012) Bear Portraits (Little, Brown, and Company: New York City, 2009) Monkey Portraits (Bulfinch Press: New York City, 2006)
New Cats in Art Humble Arts 2017 Glass Ceiling & Horses Self-Published (Exhibition Catalog) Futurspectives (Zetema Progetto Cultura: Rome, 2010), pp. 34-5, full-page illus. Ursine (Exhibition catalog in conjunction with exhibition at ClampArt: New York City, 2007) Empty Nest: The Changing Face of Childhood Art, 1880 to the Present (Catalog in conjunction with exhibition at Nathan A. Bernstein & Co. Ltd.: New York City, 2007) Jo-Ann Conklin, “Kids: Julie Blackmon, Jill Greenberg, Ruud van Empel” (Providence, Rhode Island: David Winton Bell Gallery, Brown University, 2007) Hirsch, Robert; Light & Lens: Photography in the Digital Age (Focal Press: St. Louis, Missouri) End Times (Exhibition catalog in conjunction with exhibition at Paul Kopeikin Gallery: Los Angeles, 2006) Animal House (Exhibition catalog in conjunction with exhibition at Islip Art Museum: East Islip, New York, 2006) Monkey Portraits (Exhibition catalog in conjunction with exhibition at Paul Kopeikin Gallery: Los Angeles, 2004)
Selected Public Collections:
Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon Kemper Museum, Kansas City, Missouri National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC Southeast Museum of Photography, Daytona Beach, Florida The West Collection, Oaks, Pennsylvania San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, California Sprint Nextel Corporation, Overland Park, Kansas Franklin Company Collections, Los Angeles L, G, & F Advertising, Brussels, Belgium Kevin Thomas Films ParVest Asset Management Hallmark Photography Collection, Kansas City, Missouri
Selected Private Collections:
Neil Patrick Harris Philae Knight Gwen Stefani Gillian Anderson Christian Louboutin Diane von Furstenberg Adam Fogelson David Nevins Jon Glickman Alicia Keys & Swizz Beats Jeff Poe Tom Ford Ashton Kutcher Beth Rudin DeWoody Paul Weitz Chris Weitz Kristen Bell & Dax Shepard Drew Carrey Cindy Crawford Chaney Family Collection