Known for his controversial subject matter, American photographer Andres Serrano (b.1951) often utilizes vulgar materials like bodily fluids to create willfully provocative works. The artist creates tension, engaging his spectators with a fascination for his often taboo subjects. Many of Serrano's best-known photographs involve bodily fluids — depicting, for example, milk, blood and semen. The most famous of these is "Piss Christ" (1987), a photograph of a plastic crucifix submerged in a glass of his own urine. Other bodies of work include images of the Ku Klux Klan (1990), the History of Sex (1996), a series of portraits of individuals in America (2002) and images of tropical plants in Cycads (2006). Serrano's Catholic background informs much of his work, as he focuses on the body and the spiritual condition, exploring the themes of life and death, sin and grace, the mortification and pleasures of the flesh. Born in Brooklyn, NY to a Honduran father and Haitian mother, Serrano studied art at the Brooklyn Museum Art School. For his work, Serrano has received numerous awards and honors, including the 1986 National Endowment for the Arts grant, the 1989 Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation grant, and the Art Directors Club Gold Medal in 2000. His work has recently been the subject of solo shows at Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Brussels, Belgium (2012); Galleria Pack, Milan, Italy (2011); Flying Circus Gallery, San Pedro Garza Garcia, Mexico (2010); and Ilan Engel Gallery, Paris, France (2009).

Selected Public Collections:
New Museum of Contemporary Art (New York, NY)
Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles, CA)
The Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago, IL)
Centro de Arte Contemporáneo Málaga (Málaga, Spain)
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia (Madrid, Spain)
Berardo Museum (Lisbon, Portugal)
Trevi Flash Art Museum of Contemporary Art (Trevi, Italy)
Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig (Vienna, Austria)
Malmö Konsthall (Malmö, Sweden)