Mel Chin
B. 1951, Houston, TX
Mel Chin’s art employs a wide range of approaches, from unique, idiosyncratic objects to operations that require multi-disciplinary collaboration. He insists that projects in the public field are dosed with a rigorous pragmatism and an elevated poetic. Chin’s studio work is notably without a signature style resulting in works suffused with a deeply considered restraint or excess to promote an unpredictable aesthetic. His Revival Field (1990) pioneered in the field of "green remediation" the use of plants to remove toxic, heavy metals from the soil. From 1995-1998 he formed the GALA Committee, a collective that produced In the Name of the Place a public art project conducted on American prime-time television. He is the recipient of many awards, grants, and honorary degrees, including the MacArthur Fellowship, 2019, election to the American Academy of Arts and Letters, 2021, and the Hiroshima Art Prize, 2024.
