Mark Dion

Mark Dion is an American multimedia artist, best known for his site-specific installations and works on paper that explore issues of ecology, history, and the environment. Born in 1961 in New Bedford, Massachusetts, Dion studied at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he received his BFA in 1986. He went on to pursue his MFA at the University of California, San Diego in 1989. Dion's work often draws on scientific knowledge and practice, and he is often credited with popularizing the concept of "ecological history," which uses the lens of ecology to study the past. Since the mid-1990s, Dion has created a series of installations that recontextualize the meaning of artifacts and explore the ways in which material culture has been used to convey power and meaning throughout history. His works often incorporate elements of natural history and field research, and are often based on visits to specific sites. Notable exhibitions of Dion's work include The Museum as Muse at the Museum of Modern Art (1999); MoMA PS1's Greater New York (2005); and the 2007 Venice Biennale. He has been awarded numerous grants, including a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1997 and a MacArthur Fellowship in 2008.