Kim Adams
Kim Adams is a Canadian sculptor who is known for his assemblages combining prefabricated elements, often parts of cars or other machine-made structures. His visual style is influenced by industrial design, architecture and automotive design. His large-scale sculptures incorporate the model railroading technique of kitbashing, and bright stock colours. They may be shown in a park or street as well as in a museum setting. His small surreal landscapes are toy-sized, and may be installed on shelves.
Career
Adams was born in Edmonton and studied painting at the Northwest Institute of the Arts, the Kootenay School of Art, and the University of Victoria, where he received an MFA in 1979. At the University of Victoria, he was taught by teachers with competing aesthetics, Mowry Baden and Roland Brener. By 1976, Adams was an abstract painter, but knew that sculpture and installation were his future. Despite his formal education, Adams found much of his inspiration outside the classroom.Adams's sculpture work is composed of different parts: architectural structures, street events and miniature models of landscapes and architecture. His practice grew from creating miniature models in the 1980s to life-size sculptures and installations. In Toaster Work Wagon, Adams assembled bicycles, lawn chairs, and parts of a 1960 Volkswagen bus. For his Autolamp, he used the shell of a 1985 Dodge Ram which through holes which perforate it, gives light, transforming it into a glowing structure. The Mendel Art Gallery acquired Kim Adams' sculpture Love Birds in 2013 composed of 11 foot tall sculptures - made from water barrels, grain-silo caps, and parts of two Ford Econoline vans.