Mari Eastman (b.1970, San Francisco, CA) holds an MFA from the School of The Art Institute of Chicago. Eastman has been in exhibitions at the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, the Berkeley Museum of Art, Barbara Gladstone Gallery, and Maureen Paley and had solo shows at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, Cherry and Martin Gallery, Sprüth and Magers Projekte, among others. Recent solo shows include Bombon Projects in Barcelona and Mark Jancou in Porto, Portugal. Her work has been reviewed in the New York Times, Artforum.com, and featured on the website Contemporary Art Daily. Eastman lives and works in Chicago and is on the faculty of the University of Chicago Department of Visual Arts.
Education
1996 School of The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL. Master of Fine Arts
1992 Smith College, Northampton, MA. Bachelor of Arts, Cum Laude
1991 Chautauqua School of Painting, Chautauqua, NY.
1990-91 Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT.
One and Two Person Shows
2027 The Pit, Los Angeles, CA (Mar)
2025 Marc Jancou, Porto, Portugal
Bombon Projects, Barcelona, Spain
2024 Fan Art, Project Room, Broadway Gallery, New York, NY
Pictures and Sundries: Paula Kamps and Mari Eastman, Tusk, Chicago, IL
2023 Mari Eastman at the Green Gallery, Green Gallery, Milwaukee, IL
2022 The Library, Chicago Arts Club
2021 Night Life, Goldfinch Gallery, Chicago, IL
2020 Internet Shopping in the time of Covid, Grifter, NYC, NY
Wolves at Play, BomBon Projects, Barcelona, Spain
2018 Pots and Paintings: Mari Eastman and Jen Rochlin, Green Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2017 In Situ, Goldfinch Contemporary, Chicago IL
2016 Tokyo, The 90s, Monte Clark Gallery, Vancouver, Canada
2013 Smith College, Monte Clark Gallery, Vancouver, Canada
2011 Objects, Decorative and Functional, Cherry and Martin, Los Angeles, CA
2007 It’s you and me forever, Emily Tsingou, London, England
Pop Life, Karyn Lovegrove Gallery, Los Angeles, CA,
2006 Sies and Hoeke, Duesseldorf, Germany
Sprüth and Magers Projekte, Munich, Germany
2005 Nicolai Wallner Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark
2004 Paintings, Karyn Lovegrove Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Sies + Hoke Gallery, Dusseldorf, Germany
2001 I am the Painting Factory, The Suburban, Oak Park, IL
Nicolai Wallner Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark
Hello, Goodbye, LACE, Los Angeles, CA
2000 Summertime, Bronwyn Keenan Gallery, New York, NY
(add Jacob Fabricius’ project room show how did that come off?)
1998 Predators, Ten in One Gallery, Chicago, IL
1997 Dance Party, Rx Gallery, Chicago, IL
BYOB/ Mari Eastman and Amy Wheeler are at CPR, Chicago Project Room, Chicago
Group Exhibitions
2027 Eastman, Shapton, Williamson. Bradley Ertaskarin Gallery, Montreal, Canada (January)
2026 Style is the Body Thinking, SAIC galleries, Chicago IL
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA
2024 Caspar David Friedrich: Art for a New Age, Hamburg Kunsthalle, Hamburg, Germany Moreover: 50 Paintings, Pt. 1, Green Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Loose Threads, Bombon Projects, Barcelona, Spain
2023 Daily Pictures, Each Modern, Taipei, Taiwan
The Painting Show, Gallery Artbeat, Tbilisi, Georgia
2022 Speed to Roam, Tif Sigfrids Gallery, Athens, GA
2021 I’m afraid to Own a Body, Poker Flats, Williamstown, MA
Via Café, Tif Sigfrids Gallery, Athens, GA
2019 Contemporary Paintings from the Collection, Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA
With a Capital P: Selections by Six Painters, Elmhurst Art Museum, Elmhurst, IL
2017 American Genre: Contemporary Painting, ICA Maine College of Art, Portland, ME
Fleeting Impressions and Abundance of Detail, Tif Sigfrids Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2016 The Noise of Art, Soccer Club Club, Chicago IL
2013 Brian Bress Matt Connors Mari Eastman Nathan Mabry T. Kelly Mason, Cherry and Martin, Los Angeles, CA
The Object Salon, Roberts & Tilton, Los Angeles CA
2012 Look here, upon this picture, Cherry and Martin Gallery, Los Angeles CA
20 Years, Monte Clark Gallery, Vancouver, Canada
2011 From the Recent Past: New Acquisitions, MoCA, Los Angeles CA
Unfinished Paintings, LACE, Los Angeles CA
2010 California Biennial, Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach CA (catalog)
Seven Card Stud, Cherry and Martin, Los Angeles, CA
Midnight in Malibu, Meulensteen Gallery, New York, NY
2009 Rodarte Curates Colette, Colette, Paris, France
2008 Idle Youth, Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York, NY
Asian American Art Now, Japan American National Museum, Los Angeles, CA
Hunters and Devils, Andreas Grimm, Munich, Germany
2007 Silly Adults, Galleri Nicolai Wallner, Copenhagen, Denmark
Asian American Art Now, Berkeley Art Museum, Berkeley, CA
2006 Asian American Art Now, The Asia Society, New York, NY
Landscapes, Shane Campbell Gallery, Oak Park, IL
Selections From My Wardrobe, Karyn Lovegrove Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2005 Blumenstuck, Kunstlers Gluck, Museum Schloss Morsbroich, Leverkusen, Germany
Alex Bircken, Mari Eastman and Maike Schoorel, Maureen Paley, London, England
2004 The Undiscovered Country, UCLA Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, CA (catalog)
Arnold, Eastman, and Weatherford, Daniel Hug Gallery, Los Angeles
2003 Hands up, Baby, Hands up! Kunstverein Oldenburg, Oldenburg Germany
The Cat Show, Acme Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2001 Miss World 1972: A Free Form Art Show, Daniel Reich, New York
Snapshot: New Art from Los Angeles, Hammer Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA
Drawn From LA, Midway Initiative, St. Paul, MN
Painting 2001: Artists from Berlin, LA, and NYC, Victoria Miro Gallery, London, England
2000 Three Day Weekend, 1234 El Paso, Los Angeles, CA
Duchamp’s Suitcase Arnolfini Gallery, Bristol, England.
People Are (Still) Animals,Three Day Weekend, Suzanne Vielmetter, Los Angeles, CA
The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Laughter, China Arts Object Gallery, Los Angeles
1999 Forever is a Hell of a Long Time, Bronwyn Keenan Gallery, New York,NY.
One and Two person Fair Presentations
2023 Green Gallery, June Fair, Basel, Switzerland
2022 Mari Eastman and Rosa Tharrats, Bombon Projects, Art-o-rama, Marseille, France
2021 Mari Eastman and Em Kemper, Goldfinch Gallery, NADA Miami
2019 Sheila Held and Mari Eastman, Green Gallery, NADA Invitational, Chicago
Edie Harper and Mari Eastman, RUSCHMAN, ALAC, Los Angeles
Residencies and Fellowships
2024 Oxbow Artist Residency, Oxbow School of Art, Saugatuck, MI
2023 Roger Brown Residency, New Buffalo, MI
2007 Djerrasi Resident Artists Program
1997 Illinois Arts Council Artist’s Fellowship Award
1994 Philip Morris Fellowship for Artists of Color
Collections
Hammer Museum, Los Angeles
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA
Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen, Denmark
Art in Embassies, US Department of State
Smart Museum, Art to Live With
University of Michigan,
Selected Bibliography: Writing and drawings
2027 Monograph: Small paintings 2017-2025, The Green Parrot Press, Barcelona. Edit. Rosa Lleó .Design. Carol Montpart, Essay: Sianne Ngai (Jan)
2027. On Margit Coscis, Catalogue
2025. Ummm…Fashion, Drawings
2021 Zine, catalogue Goldfinch
2010. The Barbecue, White Zinfandel
2007 Lady in Dark, Edition of 150 copies, Nieves Publishing
2008 Interview with Rodarte, Doing Bird no.14
2001 Dream Diary, Mined
2000 Pork Salad Press
1998 The Case of Ana Mendieta, Cakewalk Magazine
Selected Bibliography: Press, reviews, catalogues
2025 Rius, Clàudia. The Art of Not Complicating Life, El País, February 5
2022 Jen, Alex. Reviews: Mari Eastman, Frieze, No. 225 March
2021 https://www.contemporaryartdaily.com/project/mari-eastman-at-goldfinch-chicago-20897
2020 contemporaryartdaily.com/project/mari-eastman-at-bombon-projects-barcelona
2019 Tschorn, Adam. New Rodarte Collaborative Capsule, Los Angeles Times,
Arter, Neesha. Rodarte celebrates its lates capsule collection “Radarte” With a 1980s-Themed Extravaganza, Vogue online, August 2
2017 Pocaro, Alan. The World Keenly Observed: Mari Eastman at Goldfinch, New City
2016 The Noise of Art, Soccer Club Club, Contemporaryartdaily.com
2011 Mizota, Sharon. Art Review: Mari Eastman at Cherry and Martin, Los Angeles Times,
Diehl, Travis. Critic’s Picks, Artforum.com
Pundyk, Anne Sherwood. Objects Decorative and Functional, The Brooklyn Rail.
2010 Flores, Chloe. Interview with Chloe Flores, p52-55, 2010 California Biennial catalog, Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach, CA
2008 Wolin, Joseph R., Idle Youth, Time Out New York, Issue 671.
Knight, Christopher. One Way or Another: Asian American Artists Now, Art Review, Los Angeles Times
2006 Smith, Roberta. A Melange of Asian Roots and Shifting Identities, New York Times
Campagnola, Sonia, Dictionary of Los Angeles Artists, Flash Art, Jan-Feb
2004 Holte, Michael Ned, Mari Eastman at Karyn Lovegrove, Reviews, Artforum online
Ferguson, Russell. The Undiscovered Country, Catalogue essay (excerpt p80-83), Hammer Museum, University of California, Los Angeles.
Pagel, David. “Art Review: Leaving Room for Personality. A new Hammer Exhibit traces Figurative threads without conformity”, Los Angeles Times, Oct. 20
2003 Dambrot, Shana Nys. Summer Romance, Artweek, September
Smith, Roberta. Art in Review/Girls Gone Wild, The New York Times, July 4
2001 Cotter,Holland. Miss World 1972: A Free Form Art Show by Daniel Reich,
New York Times, Dec 4
Saltz, Jerry. Something Wild, The Village Voice/ArtNet, December
Knight, Christopher. “A Snapshot of New Art From LA LA Times
2000 Smith, Roberta. Art in Review / Mari Eastman, New York Times, Aug 4
Gavlak, Sarah. Art Review / Mari Eastman, Time Out, Aug 23
1999 Saltz, Jerry. Mood Swings, The Village Voice/Artnet August
1997 Frank, Nicholas. BYOB, Art Papers, November/December. Vol. 21, #6
Bulka, Michael. Mari Eastman at RX Gallery, World Art, Fall
Grabner, Michelle. Mari Eastman and Amy Wheeler, Chicago Project Room
Art/Text, August
Campbell, Shane. Mari Eastman, RX Gallery, The New Art Examiner, June
1996 Bulka, Michael. A-OK, The New Art Examiner, December
Other Projects
2025 Print, Edition of 40 woodblock prints, Process Process
2024 Organizer, group show, Bombon Gallery, Barcelona
2019 Organizer, The International Boutique For Middle Aged Ladies, Goldfinch, Chicago
2016 Organizer, The Noise of Art, Soccer Club Club, Chicago
2011 Co-organizer, Talks on Painting, Mandrake Bar, Los Angeles – a series of three panel discussions on painting
1998- Co-Founder and Co-editor, Cakewalk Magazine
2004