The Berlin-based artist Ignacio Uriarte (b. 1972, Krefeld, Germany) studied business administration in Madrid and Mannheim, Germany, from 1992 to 1995, then worked for corporations such as Siemens, Canon, Interlub, and Agilent Technologies in Germany, Spain, and Mexico. Inspired by his former career, Uriarte showcases in his artworks the aesthetics of the office and its travails. He often uses materials that are normally associated with a work cubicle—ink cartridges, paper clips, doodles on a Post-it—and the resulting works are commentaries on the day-to-day actions that many of us perform. His drawings, at turns bold and subtle, improvised and predetermined, occupy a zone somewhere between the febrile forces of the imagination and the stultifying culture of office life.
Uriarte has had solo exhibitions at the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, Salt Lake City (2013), the Drawing Center, New York (2013), Galería Louis 21, Palma de Mallorca, Spain (2012), Deutsches Architektur Zentrum, Berlin (2012), Art Berlin Contemporary (2012), etHALL, Barcelona (2012), Sametitled, Berlin (2012), Galleria Gentili, Prato, Italy (2012 and 2008), Figge von Rosen Galerie, Berlin (2012), Centre d’Art La Panera, Lleida, Spain (2012), Ruler Space, Helsinki, Finland (2011), Arts Santa Mònica, Barcelona (2011), Sala Rekalde, Bilbao, Spain (2011), Casa del Lago, Mexico City (2011), Likovni Salon, Celje, Slovenia (2011), Sariev Contemporary, Plovdiv, Bulgaria (2011), Espacio Marte, Mexico City (2011), i8, Reykjavik, Iceland (2010), Kunstverein Arnsberg, Germany (2010), Vierter Stock, Berlin (2011), Lichthaus Arnsberg, Germany (2010), Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Australia (2010), Galerie Feinkost, Berlin (2010), and Nogueras Blanchard, Barcelona (2010). He has exhibited in group shows at Maison Particulière, Brussels (2013), Kupferstichkabinett, Berlin (2013), Josée Bienvenu Gallery, New York (2013), Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin (2013), Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, Salt Lake City (2013 and 2012), Kunsthalle Exnergasse, Vienna (2013), Media-Scape Biennale, HDLU,
Zagreb, Croatia (2012), ZINK, Berlin (2012), DAM, Berlin (2012), University of Hawaii, Honolulu (2012), La Casa Encendida, Madrid (2012), Instituto Cervantes, Berlin (2012), Ludlow 38, New York (2012), and OTR Espacio de Arte, Madrid (2012).
