Bruce Nauman is a restlessly inventive artist. Since the late 1960s he has continually tested what an artwork can be, by reshaping old forms and creating new ones. His ground-breaking works using sound, film, video and neon have influenced generations of artists.
This is the first major exhibition of his work in London in more than 20 years. It allows visitors to engage with the artist’s universe through immersive installations with a strong emphasis on sound and moving image, as well as poetic sculptures and neon pieces.
Major works like Double Steel Cage Piece 1974, Anthro/Socio (Rinde Spinning) and Clown Torture 1987 highlights Nauman’s distinctive preoccupations and how he incessantly revisits them – yet never repeats himself.
Exhibition organised by É«¿Ø´«Ã½ and Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam in collaboration with Pirelli HangarBicocca, Milan
![close up of face from below the eyes to the neck. person is pulling their cheeks out on either side with a finger, showing their teeth.](https://media.tate.org.uk/aztate-prd-ew-dg-wgtail-st1-ctr-data/images/sw_98147e_studies_for_holograms_e.width-340.jpg)
Bruce Nauman e 1970 Tate Purchased 1994 © ARS, NY and DACS, London 2020
![red neon swirl light with blue neon text unravelling inside](https://media.tate.org.uk/aztate-prd-ew-dg-wgtail-st1-ctr-data/images/sw_99073_the_true_artist_helps_the_world_by_re.width-340_KRQuR76.jpg)
Bruce Nauman The True Artist Helps the World by Revealing Mystic Truths (Window or Wall Sign) 1967 Kunstmuseum Basel (Basel, Switzwerland) © ARS, NY and DACS, London 2020
![man standing with arms raised holding a thin t-shaped metal structure that frames his height.](https://media.tate.org.uk/aztate-prd-ew-dg-wgtail-st1-ctr-data/images/manipulating_the_t_bar_still_2.width-340.jpg)
Bruce Nauman Manipulating the T-Bar 1965–1966 Courtesy of the Artist © ARS, NY and DACS, London 2020