Brigitte Jurack (born

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...

, 1962) is a contemporary artist based in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, working predominantly in sculpture and performance art.

Life and career

Brigitte Jurack studied Protestant Theology at the Universities of Göttingen, Münster and Bonn, and Fine Art at

Kunstakademie Düsseldorf The Kunstakademie Düsseldorf is the academy of fine arts of the state of North Rhine Westphalia at the city of Düsseldorf, Germany. Notable artists who studied or taught at the academy include Joseph Beuys, Gerhard Richter, Magdalena Jetelová, ...

in Germany. Jurack completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Environmental Art at

Glasgow School of Art The Glasgow School of Art (GSA; gd, Sgoil-ealain Ghlaschu) is a higher education art school based in Glasgow, Scotland, offering undergraduate degrees, post-graduate awards (both taught and research-led), and PhDs in architecture, fine art, and ...

in 1990, supported by a British Council Scholarship. She went on to complete an MA Sculpture at

Chelsea College of Art and Design Chelsea College of Arts is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London based in London, United Kingdom, and is a leading British art and design institution with an international reputation. It offers further and higher educat ...

, London in 1992. In 2018 she completed a PhD doctoral thesis entitled 'Why bother? Uncertainty, awkwardness and bravado in the sculptural representation of youth', undertaken at

Manchester School of Art Manchester School of Art in Manchester, England, was established in 1838 as the Manchester School of Design. It is the second oldest art school in the United Kingdom after the Royal College of Art which was founded the year before. It is now par ...

(Manchester Metropolitan University). In 1998 Jurack co-founded the artist collective Foreign Investment with artist Alma Tischlerwood. The collective, who have exhibited widely internationally, seek to "create situations where artists, audiences and participant communities come together to question the value of things in unexpected ways". Projects by Foreign Investment include One Square Foot of Sky at the Collector Club, Hong Kong (2014) and Everything Must go at

Chinese Arts Centre The Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art is a contemporary art gallery based in Manchester, England. It is located on Thomas Street in Manchester's Northern Quarter in the renovated part of the Smithfield Market Hall. History Origins of th ...

, Manchester (2011). Jurack's exhibition work with Foreign Investment includes numerous performance and soundworks. In 2012 Jurack made a new piece of public sculpture, commissioned by

Wirral council Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council, or simply Wirral Council, is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in Merseyside and one of 36 in the metropolit ...

, for Central Park in

Wallasey Wallasey () is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England; until 1974, it was part of the historic county of Cheshire. It is situated at the mouth of the River Mersey, at the north-eastern corner of the Wirral Pe ...

. The sculptures to commemorate the former Wallasey School of Art were designed in collaboration with young people from local schools and youth groups and with support from

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three s ...

. Jurack has taught fine art at a number of universities in the UK, holding posts as senior lecturer at

John Moores University , mottoeng = Fortune favours the bold , established = 1823 – Liverpool Mechanics' School of Arts1992 – Liverpool John Moores University , type = Public , endowment = , coor ...

in Liverpool,

Derby University , mottoeng = Experience is the best teacher , established = 1851 – Teacher Training College1992 – gained university status , type = Public , chancellor = William Cavendish, Ear ...

, University of Newcastle and currently at

Selected exhibitions

*''Monkey Business'', FILET, London, 2018 *''Pink Parachute,''

Grundy Art Gallery The Grundy is an art gallery located in Blackpool, Lancashire, England. Its eclectic programme consists of regional historic to recent contemporary art exhibitions. Opened in 1911, it is owned and operated by Blackpool Council. It is a Grade ...

, Blackpool, 2012 *''Sculpture by the Sea'', Aarhus, Denmark, 2015 *''Just Wait for Me,'' Central Park, Wallasey, 2013 *''Die Se (e) (h) kuh'', Kiosk 24, Germany, 2011 *''Irfaran'', The Globe Gallery, Newcastle, 2008 *''Moonshine Walk'', Sutton Manor, 2008

Awards and residencies

*Sanskriti Residency, SansKriti Foundation, Delhi, India, 2018 *Shortlisted for

Liverpool Art Prize The Liverpool Art Prize is contemporary art competition open to professional artists based in the Liverpool City Region area of the United Kingdom. Background The inaugural competition took place in 2008. The competition was inspired by the Turner ...

, 2014 *Prince of Wales Bursary, British School at Athens 2010/2011 *IMMA, Dublin – artist in residence, 2010

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jurack, Brigitte 1962 births Living people 20th-century German women artists 21st-century German women artists Alumni of Chelsea College of Arts Alumni of the Glasgow School of Art Alumni of Manchester Metropolitan University German contemporary artists German women sculptors Kunstakademie Düsseldorf alumni Artists from Düsseldorf