Bastienne Schmidt
Born: 1961
Hometown: Munich, Germany
Lives and Works: Bridgehampton, NY
Website: http://bastienneschmidt.com
Education:
Art College, Pietro Vanucci, Perugia, Italy
About The Artist
Adopting the persona of a “housewife” in her work, Bastienne Schmidt stages carefully domestic scenes that are set in her own living room or in public spaces such as laundromats. Schmidt’s work is influenced by the films of Wim Wenders, and the paintings and prints of Katsushika Hokusai, Sigmar Polke, Jan Vermeer, Cindy Sherman, and Edward Hopper. Photographed mostly in the Hamptons or on Long Island, Schmidt's work portrays the irony of a social contract in a world of suburban wonders.
Born in Germany, raised in Greece and Italy, and living in New York for the past 20 years, Schmidt has been shown nationally and internationally at over 50 exhibitions, including solo shows at the International Center of Photography in New York and The Museum für Kunst und Gewerbein in Hamburg, Germany. She has also published 4 monographs, among them Vivir la Muerte, American Dreams, Shadow Home—which was awarded the “Best Photo Book Prize” in Germany in 2005—and Home Stills, her latest monograph of drawings and photographs, published by Berlin-based Jovis in 2010. Home Stills, which accompanied one-person exhibitions at the Southeast Museum of Photography in Daytona Beach, FL and Harper’s Gallery in Easthampton, NY, depicts an ironic view on female gender roles.
Artist Q&A
1. What is your idea of happiness?
Sitting with family and friends in a little taverna in Greece looking at the water.
2. What is your guilty pleasure?
Lemon Tarts.
3. What is your favorite film?
Stalker by Tarkovsky.
4. What books are on your bedside table?
The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles.
5. If not yourself, who would you want to be?
Louise Bourgeois.
Select Permanent Collections
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
The International Center of Photography, New York, NY
The Brooklyn Museum, New York, NY
The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England
The Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris, France
Works by the Artist
