Ion Birch (born 1971 in New York, NY) is a contemporary American artist. Birch graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1994.
Birch has worked in the mediums of drawing and painting. Often incorporating black humor and caricature, he creates unusual images that evoke poetic narratives, these works involve a high degree of subjectivity and are often cryptic in their meaning. Birch is best known for his graphite on paper works which incorporate phallic symbols and other erotic imagery. He has stated that these works are a meditation on the nature of repression. Birch has been grouped within broader trends of figurative and conceptual art that focus on contemporary perceptions of the body and sexuality.
Solo Exhibitions:2007 The Spiraling Sun, Freight + Volume, New York, NY2003 Policeworms, Neon Gallery Brösarp, Brösarp, Sweden2003 The Young Penis, Bellwether, Brooklyn, NY2001 Bronwyn Keenan Gallery, New York, NY2000 Margrett, New York, NYGroup Exhibitions & Projects:2011 Romantic Agony, Horton Gallery, New York, NY2011 Sick, Cur. Meghan Carleton & Max Wolf, Misc. New York, NY2011 The Perfumed Handkerchief, Cur. Alison Ward, Flux Factory, Long Island City, NY2011 Pornucopia, Alegra La Viola Gallery, New York, NY2011 Private Future, Cur. Michael Cline, Marc Jancou Contemporary, New York, NY2011 Sex Drive, Cur. Stuart Horodner, Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery Haverford College, Haverford, PA2009 Reconfiguring the Body in American Art, National Academy of Art, New York, NY2008 In Your Face, Buia Gallery, New York, NY2008 Desire, Art Forum Berlin, Freight + Volume, Berlin, Germany2008 Timeless: The Art of Drawing, Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ2007 Big Secret Cache, Angstrom Gallery, Los Angeles, CA2006 FIAC, Freight + Volume, Paris, France2006 Yankee Doodle Flea Market & Art Show, Cur. United Bamboo & James Fuentes, Hillside Plaza, Tokyo, Japan2006 Little Man, Freight + Volume, New York, NY2006 Art LA, Freight + Volume, Los Angeles, CA2005 FIAC, Freight + Volume, Paris, France2005 Ab Ovo, Cur. Steven Hull, Steven Wolf Fine Arts, San Francisco, CA2005 Stick/Figure, Showroom MAMA, Rotterdam, The Netherlands2005 Inter-States, DNA Gallery, Provincetown, MA2005 Contemporary Erotic Drawing, Diverseworks, Houston, TX, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT2004 The Armory Show, Bellwether, New York, NY2004 Hello Chelsea, Bellwether, New York, NY2003 The Armory Show, Bellwether, New York, NY2003 Vices and Habits, Here Art, New York, NY2003 United Bamboo Showroom, Spaceforce, Tokyo, Japan2003 From New York to Charleston, The Gallery, Charleston, SC2002 Tits & Art II, GV-AS, Brooklyn, NY2002 End of the Rainbow, Bellwether, Brooklyn, NY2001 Paper, Earl Mc Grath Gallery, New York, NY2000 Forever is..., Bronwyn Keenan Gallery, New York, NY2000 Stocking Stuffers, Earl Mc Grath Gallery, New York, NY1999 Room With a View, Sixth@Prince, New York, NY1998 Event Horizon, Showroom, Santa Fe, NM1998 Pow Wow, Life, New York, NY1997 Smells Like Vinyl, Roger Marians Gallery, New York, NY
