• Biography

    Born 1993 in London, UK

    Lives and works in London, UK

     

    Jack O'Brien's work is grounded in a subtle interplay of material, personal experience, and cultural critique. His installations evoke a sense of precarity, reflecting both the physical and social fragility of the structures he constructs. O'Brien's sculptures are often informed by rapidly transforming urban landscapes that have shaped his understanding of space, and the social dynamics that unfold within these environments. The artist stretches found and repurposed objects to the point of abstraction, surrounding them with the material of consumer society: shrink wrap, epoxy, fabric, cable ties and PETG plastic. For O'Brien, this act of binding is more than a formal gesture; it mirrors the complexities of human relationships, where identities intertwine, merge, and evolve.

     

    O'Brien is particularly interested in destabilizing the fixed nature of objects, forcing rigid materials like metal and glass into confrontations that evoke a sense of unease. His sculptures create a tension between hardness and softness, between impenetrable materials and malleable fabrics. Through these material clashes, O'Brien challenges notions of form and function with works that appear charged with nervous energy, as if on the verge of collapse. This precariousness becomes a metaphor for the broader, often fraught, dynamics of identity, particularly within the context of queer cultural histories and the lineage of queer abstraction. The artist employs abstraction not to obscure meaning, but to open up new ways of engaging with political and personal narratives. His use of materials as 'eloquent texts' imbues his sculptures with cultural significance.

     

    Jack O'Brien's solo and duo exhibitions include Kestner Gesellschaft, Hanover (2025); Camden Art Centre, London (2024); Between Bridges, Berlin (2023); Sans Titre Invites, Paris (2023); Lockup International, London (2022) and Polamagnetczne Gallery, Warsaw (2022). Group exhibitions include Partenaires Particulaires, Fondation CAB Saint-Paul de Vence; minimal, minimal, POUSH, Aubervilliers (2025); An Uncommon Thread, Hauser & Wirth Summerset (2025); Air de repos, CAPC Bordeaux (2024); Non-Specific Objects, Capitain Petzel, Berlin (2024); Support Structures, Gathering, London, (2023); Memory of Rib, N/A Gallery, Seoul, KR (2022); Something is Burning, Kunsthalle Bratislava (2022) and An Insular Rococo, Hollybush Gardens, London (2022).

     

    Jack O'Brien was the recipient of the Camden Art Center's 2023 Emerging Artist Prize at Frieze. His work is included in the Pinault Collection, Paris; The Rubell Museum, Miami, FL; TANK Shanghai and The Perimeter, London.

  • Installation view: Air de repos (Breathwork), CAPC Musée d’art contemporain de Bordeaux, 2024 – 2025
  • Jack O’Brien, Phaedrus, 2024

    Jack O’Brien

    Phaedrus, 2024
    Cellos, cellophane, chrome-plated steel, spray paint, seat-belt webbing, bolts, shock cord
    133 x 110 x 45 cm
    52.4 x 43.3 x 17.2 inches
  • Jack O’Brien, Chest, 2025

    Jack O’Brien

    Chest, 2025
    Table, gramophone horns, bollards, stockinette and spray paint
    160 x 137 x 95 cm
    63 x 54.9 x 37.4 inches
  • Jack O’Brien, Cue the Cue, 2025

    Jack O’Brien

    Cue the Cue, 2025
    Former theatre stand made of 54 antique chairs, silver-colored coins, plexiglass and aluminum
    600 x 600 x 908 cm
    236.2 x 236.2 x 357.5 inches
  • Jack O’Brien, Overflow II (mesh banner), 2025

    Jack O’Brien

    Overflow II (mesh banner), 2025
    Mesh fabric, spray paint and cable
    450 x 15000 cm
    177.2 x 5905.5 inches
  • Jack O’Brien, Fuel I, 2025

    Jack O’Brien

    Fuel I, 2025
    U-Bahn windows, steel balls, acrylic plastic and spray paint
    160 x 100 x 50 cm
    63 x 39.4 x 19.7 inches
  • Jack O’Brien, Overflow VI, 2025

    Jack O’Brien

    Overflow VI, 2025
    Magazine, silver spoon, circular saw blades, shoelaces, spray paint and steel plate
    24.1 x 32 x 5.5 cm
    9.5 x 12.6 x 2.2 inches
  • Jack O’Brien, Fringe, 2025, Collection TANK Shanghai
  • Jack O’Brien, Semblance, 2025

    Jack O’Brien

    Semblance, 2025
    Grand pianos, roofing asphalt and steel wire
    181 x 371 x 48 cm
    71.3 x 146.1 x 18.9 inches
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  • Installation view: Jack O’Brien, The Reward, Camden Art Centre, 2024
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