Juan Muñoz

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Juan Muñoz (born Madrid, Spain 1953) was a Spanish artist who died unexpectedly in August 2001. He is known internationally for his enigmatic sculptural installations, often populated by strangely haunting, almost-human figures. Juan Muñoz came to prominence in the mid-1980s with his gallery installations, in which a single figure or architectural element was isolated spatially through perspectival techniques. Often the figure was a clown or dwarf, and the effect was one of alienation. Juan Muñoz is renowned for sculptural works in which he situates the human figure within elaborate or complex architectural settings. These are created using elements such as patterned floors, staircases and balconies. Then, by a highly considered placement of the figures, Muñoz entices the viewer into an engagement with the implied dramas unravelling within.