The Life and Training of Adam Cvijanovic
Adam Cvijanovic was born on 28 October 1960 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His path as a painter did not follow the traditional academic route. He left his high school in Cambridge at the age of seventeen, opting to move away from formal classroom structures. This departure marked the beginning of a life shaped by self-directed study rather than institutional instruction.
Now based in New York City, Cvijanovic has spent decades working as a self-taught artist. His development occurred through direct engagement with his medium and the landscapes he observes. He has lived through various chapters of American history, often looking closely at the environments shaped by those events. His presence in the New York art scene has been steady, moving from his early years in Massachusetts to his current studio in Brooklyn’s Navy Yard.
Artistic Technique and Style
Cvijanovic works on a large scale. He often chooses Tyvek sheeting as his substrate, a material that allows his paintings to be moved and installed in various locations without the weight or fragility of traditional canvas. His process involves a focus on the physical manifestation of American power and success. He seeks to depict these forms on a monumental scale, often through the lens of the landscapes where American wars have been fought. The work functions as an extended study of American hubris and the landscapes that attend it.
His paintings often take the form of sprawling, unsettling vistas. He looks at the history of American culture and attempts to expose its enduring hubris through these large-scale depictions. The imagery focuses on the search for power and the ways that power leaves its mark on the land. There is a tension in the way he handles these subjects, presenting the physical reality of these historical moments through a wide, expansive view.
Major Commissions and Exhibitions
His presence in the gallery circuit has been marked by several significant solo and group shows. He held a solo exhibition at the UCLA Hammer Museum in 2005. Later, in 2007, he exhibited alongside Peter Garfield at MASS MoCA. His work is represented by Postmasters Gallery in New York.
Large-scale commissions have allowed him to move his work into public and sacred spaces. In 2013, he was commissioned to create 10,000 Feet, a mural of the Indiana countryside located at the Alexander Hotel in Indianapolis, Indiana. More recently, between 2024 and 2025, he worked on a twelve-panel mural titled What's So Funny About Peace, Love, and Understanding. This piece was installed in the narthex of St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City, where it was unveiled by Cardinal Timothy Dolan on September 17, 2025.
Notable Works and Collections
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York holds his 1984 work, Private Joke. This piece, an oil and pastel work on paper, remains a significant part of the museum's collection. His presence in major institutions has been marked by various exhibitions, including a showing at P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center in New York. His paintings have also been part of the "USA Today" exhibition, which was curated from the collection of Charles Saatchi at the Royal Academy in London. This specific exhibition later traveled to the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
His work has moved through several international spaces. He had pieces featured at the Liverpool Biennial at the Tate Liverpool. In 2008, his paintings were included in exhibitions at the New Orleans Biennial and the Walker Arts Center. These appearances reflect a career spent placing large-scale works in diverse settings, from contemporary art centers to established museum halls.
