Collection: Marcel Dzama

b. 1974 (Canadian)

Marcel Dzama’s small ink and watercolor drawings of hybrid characters, like humans with antlers or trees with hands, resemble story illustrations. Interspersed with a range of references including Surrealist film, Dadaism and Soviet-era agitprop, his work more often recalls folk and craft storytelling traditions, showing that simple narrative can be an intricate, compelling contemporary art-making strategy. Dzama also works in sculpture and video and has experimented with puppetry and costumes. His work has been used on the covers of a number of music albums for bands such as They Might Be Giants, Beck, and The Weakerthans; and his costume designs have been seen in music videos, including the video for the Bob Dylan’s When the Deal Goes Down.