Steven Spazuk
Steven Spazuk paints with fire in a technique he refers to as “fumage,” reinventing traditional artistic approaches. Since 2001, Spazuk has refined this skill – creating exquisitely vivid figures and animals from the residue of his candle’s brushstrokes. To achieve his painterly depictions, Spazuk gently and deliberately directs a candle's flame to the surface of his panels. The fire scorches and kisses wisps of black carbon residue, which shapes the silhouettes of his figures. He then carefully scratches away and removes the soot to reveal each composition. In order to achieve color in his artworks, the artist often begins his pieces by applying acrylic paint before "smoking" them with fire. As he scratches away, he reveals the colors underneath, which help define the subjects of his works.
His process is mesmerizing to watch, and the final products are even more inspiring. The transparency, fluidity, and unpredictability of smoke affect his images and propel the evolution of his technique. The subjects of his work relate to the duality of his chosen medium. Fire has destructive and constructive properties, which can give life and take it away. His compositions allude to this force in nature, as they reflect the fragility and grit of life on earth.
"My art is based on a sustained exploration of new dimensions and applications of the technique of “fumage”, that is, painting with fire. The focus of my subjects, projects and collections is the relationships between humans and the natural world. My work explores the current reality of the climate crisis and the Anthropocene through lenses that highlight the ambivalence of humanity. This duality of human nature is reflected in the medium of fire, and carbon as soot, both of which hold the power to nurture or destroy life." - Steven Spazuk
EDUCATION
1983 Bachelor's Degree in Communication Arts, Université Laval, Québec, Canada.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2023 KIN, Adelson Galleries, New York, USA
2020 F!RE F!RE F!RE, Adelson Galleries, Palm Beach, USA
2018 Flowers - Triggers of Peace, Adelson Galleries, Boston, USA
2017 Minuit moins une, Station 16 Gallery , Montréal, Canada
2017 Spazuk, Centaur Theater, Montréal, Canada
2017 Spazuk, Art of Protest Gallery, York, UK
2017 Hubris, Beauty and Greed, Adelson Galleries, Boston, USA
2016 Chant Libre, Galerie Lounge TD, Montréal, Canada.
2016 Dialogues autour du feu, Galerie Arts-Sutton, Sutton, Canada.
2016 Smoke Signal, Nuart Gallery, Stavanger, Norvège.
2016 SPAZUK | Palimpsest, KARUIZAWA NEW ART MUSEUM, Nagano, Japon
2015 Smoking Guns & Feathers, REED Projects Gallery, Stavanger, Norvège.
2015 Récidive | Autres convictions et interprétations, Galerie C.O.A., Montréal, Canada
2015 Révérence | Monarque, Pavillon de l’île, Héritage St-Bernard, Châteauguay, Canada
2014 Convictions et autres interprétations, Galerie C.O.A., Montréal, Canada
2013 SPAZUK, Galerie Martine Hénault, Montréal, Canada
2012 SPAZUK, Galerie Martine Hénault, Montréal, Canada
2010 SPAZUK, Galerie 2M2, Montréal, Canada.
2010 Vracs, Le Méridien, Montréal, Canada.
2008 Hasard/Bazar, Galerie d’art Quartier Libre, Montréal, Canada.
2007 26 dessins pour le Rwanda, Projek Room, Montréal, Canada
2006 Spazuk, Projek Room, Montréal, Canada
2006 Quelques Velléités, Galerie d’art Quartier Libre, Montréal, Canada.
2005 Spazuk, Gallery Twenty-Four, Berlin, Germany.
2003 Spazuk, Galerie SAS, Montréal, Canada.
2002 Spazuk Œuvres récentes, Galerie SAS, Montréal, Canada.
2002 Trace, ou présence d’absence, Galerie Montcalm, Hull, Canada.
2001 Spazuk Œuvres récentes, Galerie SAS, Montréal, Canada.
2000 Spazuk expo Galerie TM, Montréal, Canada.
1994 Spazuk en exergue, Galerie 55 Prince, Montréal, Canada
SELECTED GROUP SHOWS
2021 Birds in Art 2021, Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, Wisconsin, USA
2018 DECKED, Nuart Gallery, Stavanger, Norvège
2018 PAPIER18, Gallerie Station 16 Montreal Canada
2018 Tick-Tock: Time in Contemporary Art, Leeman College, New-York, USA.
2017 Bullets and Smoke, Jewish Art Center, Philadelphia,USA
2017 Leigh Yawkey Woodson Museum, Birds in Art 2017 Waussau,WI, USA.
2017 Revolutions per Minute, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
2017 Juxtapoz, Gallerie Station 16 Miami, USA
2017 Moniker Art Fair, Gallerie Station 16 London, UK
2017 Scope Miami, Gallerie Station 16 Miami, USA
2017 Context Miami, Adelson Galleries, Miami, USA
2017 PAPIER17, Gallerie Station 16 Montreal Canada
2017 HOUSE, Nuart Gallery, Stavanger, Norvège
2016 THE ATROCITY EXHIBITION 2.0, Nuart Gallery, Stavanger, Norvège
2016 ART-UP, Lile, Paris, France, représenté par Unique Gallery
2015 HOME, Reed Project Gallery, Stavanger, Norvège
2015 SCOPE • Miami, représenté par Galerie C.OA., Miami Beach, Floride, US
2015 MUTE, Galerie C.O.A., Montréal, Canada 2015
2015 OUTSIDERSIN, Reed Projects Gallery, Stavanger, Norvège.
2015 ALS, Artists Lend Support, NY, US
2015 FUOCO, Heart-Pulsazioni culturali, Milan, Italy
2015 SCOPE • New-York, représenté par Galerie C.OA, New-York, NY, US
2015 MONSTERS, Galerie Abyss, Montréal, Canada
2014 PLAY, Galerie C.O.A., Montréal, Canada
2014 CULT, Galerie C.O.A., Montréal, Canada
2014 RÉVÉRENCE le Projet Monarque, Muséum Nature Insectarium, Montréal, Canada
2013 TURN Gallery, Soot and Stars, New-York, NY, US
2013 Galerie Carte-Blanche, Montréal, Canada
2013 NEURO Portraits, Montréal, Canada
2013 Galerie Les Impatients, Parlez-moi d’amour, Montréal, Canada
2012-13 Galerie Martine Hénault, Montréal, Canada
2011 Kingston Prize, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada
2011 SAA Exhibition, Sagamihara, Japon
2011 Toronto Art Expo, Canada
2011 La Foire d’art Contemporain de St-Lambert, Montréal, Canada
2010 FIRE, Montréal, Canada
2010 La Foire d’art Contemporain de St-Lambert, Montréal, Canada
2009 Art Biennale Internazionale, Chianciano, Italie
2007 Biennale Internazionale dell’Arte Contemporanea, Florence, Italie
2005 Galerie d’art Quartier Libre, Montréal, Canada.
2003 Galerie SAS, Montréal, Canada.
2002 Galerie SAS, Montréal, Canada.
2001 Tendances Contemporaines Galerie TM, Montréal, Canada.
2000 Galerie TM, Montréal, Canada.
2000 PassART 2000, Rouin, Canada
2000 Stratford 2000, Galerie Stratford, Canada
1996 LOVE, Archives Gallery, Toronto, Canada
1994 Spazuk en exergue, Galerie 55 Prince, Montréal, Canada
GUEST ARTIST
2018 FUMAGE, Live Performance in Parma, Italy. Part of the Davines international Show.
2017 ZIPPO lighters, Spoke person for their 85th anniversary.
2017 HORSE magazine, Barcelona, Spain
2017 "Sekai No Hatte Madde Itte Q!" NTV Japaneese TV
2016 Invited to Madrid by Amnesty International to talk about the Force Disapearances.
2016 Galerie Loundge TD, Live Performance, Nuits Blanches de Montréal
2015 MAXIMUM LEVEL Japaneese TV
2015 RÉVÉRENCE, Projet Monarque, Héritage St-Bernard, Châteauguay, Canada
2015 RDI matin, Montréal, Canada
2015 LCN Québec matin, Montréal, Canada
2015 La Fabrique Culturelle.tv
2014 RÉVÉRENCE, Projet Monarque, Insectarium de Montréal-Espace pour la Vie, Montréal, Canada
2013 Conference at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Morélia, Mexico
2012 "Livraison d’artistes" ARTV
2011 Guest Artist, Centre Eaton Montréal, Nuits Blanches de Montréal.
2010 Nuit Blanche de Montréal, Guest Artist centre Eaton Montréal, Canada
2009 Nuit Blanche de Montréal, Guest Artist par centre Eaton Montréal, Canada
2008 « 1000 empreintes de choristes », Mondial Chorale, Laval, Canada
2007 « Expression », portrait d’artiste, TV5
2006 Exklusiv, artiste invité, La fondation du Maire, Montréal, Canada
2002 Festival « Off-Court » Trouville sur mer, France
2002 Save Tibet, Paris, France
1997 De soleil, de terre et d’eau/ A Canadian Allegory, Concepteur d’images, APEC 97, Vancouver, Canada