Marcel Dzama

(Canadian, born 1974)

Marcel Dzama is a contemporary Canadian artist and designer known for his whimsical illustrations. Dzama's ink-and-watercolor figure drawings are often fantastical in nature, recalling Surrealism and Folk Art in their inventive scenes featuring anthropomorphized animals and objects. “I love when art or mythology has a sense of humor—I feel an immediate engagement that transcends time,” the artist has said. Born on May 4, 1974 in Winnipeg, Canada, Dzama received his BFA in 1997 from the University of Manitoba. The influence of Marcel Duchamp and Francis Picabia, in particular, can be seen in Dzama’s playful film Une danse des bouffons (A Jester’s Dance) (2013), while Dzama’s dioramas bear similarities to those of Joseph Cornell. In 2013, working with Raymond Pettibon, Dave Eggers, and Spike Jonze, Dzama produced the illustrated monograph Marcel Dzama: Sower of Discord, featuring more than 500 color images. The artist’s works can be found in the collections of the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., among others. He currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.