Date of Birth: August 3, 1953
Zodiac Sign: Leo
Biography
Marlene Dumas is a prominent South African-born artist known for her striking and emotionally charged paintings. She was born on August 3, 1953, in Cape Town, South Africa. Dumas is particularly celebrated for her portraits, which often explore themes of identity, sexuality, and human vulnerability. She moved to the Netherlands in 1976, where she studied at the Ateliers’63 in Haarlem (now Amsterdam). Dumas’ work is heavily influenced by her personal experiences and socio-political issues, and she frequently uses media such as ink, watercolor, and oil paint to create her evocative pieces. Dumas has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions worldwide, and her works are part of major public and private collections. Some of her most notable exhibitions include her solo show at the Tate Modern in London in 2008 and her participation in the Venice Biennale. Despite the often dark and unsettling nature of her work, Dumas’ art continues to captivate audiences with its raw honesty and emotional depth.
5 Interesting Facts about Marlene Dumas
1. Marlene Dumas moved to the Netherlands in 1976, where she became an integral part of the Dutch art scene.
2. Her work often addresses complex themes such as racial and sexual identity, celebrity, and the human condition.
3. Dumas’ 2008 retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York was one of the most comprehensive exhibitions of her work to date.
4. In addition to painting, Dumas is known for her work with collage and printmaking.
5. Her painting “The Visitor” sold for $6.3 million at a Sotheby’s auction in 2008, setting a record for a living female artist at the time.
5 Most Interesting Quotes from Marlene Dumas
1. “I paint because I am a woman. (It’s a logical necessity.)”
2. “The best works, for me, are the ones that express the most confusion.”
3. “My work is not about what I see. It’s about what I make others see.”
4. “I always say that I don’t paint portraits, I paint people.”
5. “I’m not a political artist. But everything is political.”
Highest Net Worth Achieved
Marlene Dumas’ highest net worth achieved is estimated to be around $20 million.
Children
Marlene Dumas has one daughter, Helena Dumas, who was born in 1989.
Relevant Links
1. [Marlene Dumas at Tate Modern](https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/marlene-dumas-2646
2. [Marlene Dumas on MoMA](https://www.moma.org/artists/1621
3. [Marlene Dumas Biography on Artsy](https://www.artsy.net/artist/marlene-dumas
4. [Marlene Dumas at Sotheby’s](https://www.sothebys.com/en/artists/marlene-dumas
5. [Marlene Dumas Interview on Art21](https://art21.org/artist/marlene-dumas/
