American, b. 1972
Aaron Young is best known for performanceart works like Greeting Card (2007), in which a team
of motorcycle riders performed intricate choreography atop a plywood surface covered in seven layers
of fluorescent paint and two coats of black acrylic. The resulting panels, referencing JacksonPollock's
Actionpainting and RobertRauschenberg's 1951 Automobile Tire Print, combine the gestural marks of
revealed paint, tire burns, and skid marks. Young's sculptures, such as spray-painted boulders and
battered iron barricades recast in gold-plated cast steel, are similarly interested in the figures and
imagery of rebel and urban culture.
The artist has exhibited in solo shows at Macro (Museo di Arte Contemporanea) in Rome, Italy;
Teatro di Marcello, in Rome, Italy; as well as performances in Moscow, Naples and New York City.
Group exhibitions include, P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center in Long Island; The Whitney Biennial,
the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The 2nd Moscow Biennial for Contemporary Art,
Moscow; The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburg, PA. His work is included in the collection of
the Museum of Modern Art, New York, Astrup Fearnley Museum for Modern Kunst and the Jumex Collection.
He lives and works in New York City.
