Kris Martin
Kris Martin (born 1972 in Kortrijk) is a Belgian conceptual visual artist. His work consists of monumental and small-scale sculptures, drawings and interventions. Recurring themes in his work are the notion of time, history and the transience of human existence.
Kris Martin
Wasily · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Born
- 1972 · Kortrijk.
- Nationality
- Belgium
- Occupation
- draftsperson · artist · photographer
- Languages
- French
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Documentary summary
Kris Martin (born 1972 in Kortrijk) is a Belgian conceptual visual artist. His work consists of monumental and small-scale sculptures, drawings and interventions. Recurring themes in his work are the notion of time, history and the transience of human existence.
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Note VALÉORINE
Kris Martin (born 1972) is an artist, conceptual artist and draftsperson, among other activities, of Belgian nationality. The artist was born in Kortrijk. Kris Martin worked in Ghent.
Languages used include French. Works are held at M HKA - Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen, Mu.ZEE - Kunstmuseum aan Zee and Museum Arnhem, among others.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
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wikidata · Q1789065 · wikipedia · Kris Martin
In this article
Solo shows
Solo shows
His artwork also explores the relationship between the creators and the consumers of art, and combines elements of contemplation with humour and playfulness. Among his best known works are 'Mandi XVIII', a plaster cast of the Laocoon group with the snakes omitted, and '100 years' a sculpture that will explode in 100 years from its conception. Martin has worked with curators Jan Hoet and Jens Hoffmann. Martin held his first solo show in 2000. Since then he has mounted many solo exhibitions, and his work has been included in dozens of group exhibitions. In 2020, a retrospective of Martin's work was held at S.M.A.K Ghent titled EXIT. The exhibition gathered many well known works amongst which the iconic Altar (2004), with recent additions such as Water (2020), a spread of vessels holding the life sustaining liquid.
The recorded working language is French. Places of work recorded in the authority are Ghent. Work by Kris Martin is recorded in the collections of Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Museum Arnhem, M HKA - Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen, Mu.ZEE - Kunstmuseum aan Zee and Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens.
• 2000 - Wahnsinn, Garden of Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens, Deurle • 2004 - Beaulieu Gallery, Wortegem-Petegem • 2005 - Neuer Aachener Kunstverein, Aachen; Sies + Höke, Düsseldorf • 2006 - Deus ex machina, Johann König, Berlin • 2007 - MoMA PS1, New York; My Private 5, Piazza San Marco, Venedig; Sies + Höke, Düsseldorf; Marc Foxx, Los Angeles • 2009 - Aspen Art Museum, Aspen; Sies + Höke, Düsseldorf; Johann König, Berlin • 2010 - FESTUM, White Cube, London; T.Y.F.F.S.H., K20 Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf; Almine Rech Gallery, Brüssel/Brussels • 2011 - Sies + Höke, Düsseldorf; Marc Foxx, Los Angeles; The Magnificent Seven: Hammarby!, Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, San Francisco • 2012 - Every Day of the Weak, Kestnergesellschaft, Hannover, Kunstmuseum Bonn, Aargauer Kunsthaus, Aarau; Mandi VIII, Lehmbruck-Museum, Duisburg; DO NOT CROSS THE RED LINE, Kunst-Station Sankt Peter, Köln; Festum II, Theseustempel, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Wien • 2013 - Somebody, Sies + Höke, Düsseldorf; White Cube, London; Künstlerraum, K21 Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf • 2016 - König Galerie, Berlin. • 2020 - EXIT, S.M.A.K, Ghent.
Identity
Identity
Kris Martin is recorded with the occupation conceptual artist. Recorded as draftsperson, artist and photographer.
Kris Martin: Altar (2014), on the beach in Ostend, Belgium
Sandra Fauconnier
Genter Altar auf dem Friedhof Hall in Tirol.
-wuppertaler
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1972
Kris Martin was born on 1 January 1972.
2014
Altar is dated 2014.
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Kris Martin”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q1789065: Kris Martin
General reference · Wikidata
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1."Kris Martin Goes From Eros to Eternity at König Galerie Berlin". Blouin Art Info, BY Lisa Contag | July 20, 2016
- 2.Harriet Baskas. Hidden Treasures: What Museums Can't or Won't Show You. Globe Pequot Press. 68–. 1 October 2013. 978-1-4930-0161-3.
- 3."MCA exhibition ‘S, M, L, XL’ engages with all shapes, sizes". DePauline, By Tiffany Freeman on May 17, 2015
- 4.Michael K. Corbin. Art for the People: A Collector's Journal. AuthorHouse. 165–. December 2011. 978-1-4567-2964-6.
- 5."The Most Frequently Stolen Artwork in History Is…On the High Line?". Observer, Noah Charney September 30, 2015
- 6."Laugh At Death: Kris Martin on Mortality, Silent Bells and the Skeleton He Buried in an Art Museum's Front Lawn". Huffington Post, May 18 2014
- 7."Sizing the Immaterial: S, M, L, XL at MCA". ArtSlant, 5/12/2015 by Stephanie Cristello
- 8."At the Jewish Museum, Kris Martin Riffs on Retail". ArtNetNews. Blake Gopnik, Tuesday, June 16, 2015
- 9."The Shape of Things to Come, Saatchi Gallery / John Chamberlain, Gagosian Gallery, review". The Telegraph, Alastair Sooke, 30 May 2011
- 10.Cambridge Scholars Publishing. The Permanence of the Transient: Precariousness in Art. 23–. 26 June 2014. 978-1-4438-6288-2.
- 11.Kris Martin "EXIT" S.M.A.K / Ghent. Flash Art. 2020-05-26.
- 12."Gallery Hopping: Kris Martin at König Galerie, Berlin". ArtNet News, Hili Perlson, August 5, 2016
- 13.Biggs, Domela, Waldron and Kirk (eds) "Liverpool Biennial International Festival of Contemporary Art The Guide". Liverpool Biennial of Contemporary Art Ltd. p72
- 14.Sherwin, Skye. "Artist of the week 105: Kris Martin", The Guardian, London, 16 September 2010. Retrieved on 5 September 2014.
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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