Kris Cox was born in 1951 and was largely inspired by the 1970s. The art sphere of the 1970s was characterized by a longing to evolve and strengthen itself, as a reaction to the many conflicts of the previous decade. One of the most important movement of the 1970s was Conceptualism, which appeared as an offshoot of Minimalism, while the experimental, creative voyage of Process art emerged by combining essential features of Conceptualism with further considerations on art itself. The earliest ideas of environmentalism bounced from Land Art, which took art into earth itself, sculpting the land and bringing art to the outdoors. For the first time since the decline of Abstract Expressionism, Expressive figure painting slowly re-emerged and regained its status, predominantly in Germany through the works of world renowned figures Gerhard Richter, Anselm Kiefer and Georg Baselitz. Most of the dominant artistic figures of the 1960s remained highly influential and popular throughout the 1970s. Andy Warhol, for instance, secured his status as a legendary artist, by branching out into film and magazine publishing, thus introducing a ground-breaking concept of cross-cultural activity for a visual artist of such fame. A few noteworthy international movements that sharpened the era include photorealism, which was firstly introduced in the 1960s and reached commercial and critical success in the 1970s, as well as feminism which had a strong impact on the visual culture.

Cox received an MFA from RISD, and was an assistant professor of art at San Diego State University until he resigned in 1982 to become a full-time artist. Kris has had over 50 one-man shows, and has works in many museum and other prestigious collections.

The threads that run through Cox’s various bodies of work, (Photo based Works on Mylar, 2009, Alchemy Series, 2008, Site Series, 2008, Concentric Episode Series, 1995-2008, Four-Letter Word Series, 2007-2008,et.al) include a strong conceptual basis, often references to time and memory, and works that have a great sense of “objectness”; whether sculpture, ‘constructed’ paintings, or ‘constructed’ photo images digitally printed on layers of mylar.  

Transformation of materials is evident throughout his mediums including pigmented wood putties, cast patinated lead, digital printing on mylar, and cast pigmented beeswax among others. Heat, what Joseph Beuys has called a metaphor for thought, is often employed by Cox to create his art. It is Cox’s intention that his pieces are seductive from a distance, and upon close inspection, reward the viewer with nuance and an intimate beauty, which he does not feel is anachronistic.