JUDY PFAFF was born in London in 1946. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Washington University in Saint Louis, Missouri in 1971 and graduated from Yale University with a Master of Fine Arts degree in 1973.
A pioneer of installation art, Pfaff has had over 100 major solo installations across the country and abroad at such venues as the Chazen Museum of Art, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI; the Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO; the Saint Louis Art Museum, Saint Louis, MO; the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY; Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH and the Hirshorn Museum and Sculpture Garden of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Pfaff was the represented artist for the United States in the 1998 São Paolo Biennial. Her work is included in many public and private collections including the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY; The Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY; the Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI; the High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA; the Chazen Museum of Art, Madison, WI; The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY and the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C.
Pfaff is the recipient of numerous awards including a MacArthur Fellowship, 2004; an Award of Merit Gold Medal for Sculpture from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York, 2002; a Bessie Award, 1984; a Guggenheim Fellowship, 1983 as well as two Na- tional Endowment for the Arts grants, 1979 and 1986. She is the Richard B. Fisher Professor in the Arts and Co-Chair of the Studio Arts Program at Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.
Recently, Pfaff was the visiting artist in the Walter Gropius Master Artist Series at the Huntington Museum of Art in Huntington, West Virginia. The artist currently lives and works in Kingston and Tivoli, New York.

A respected voice in contemporary art discourse.
Focusing on ambitious storytelling and insightful art-world commentary. Ocula Magazine publishes in-depth interviews, critical essays and timely analysis on the artists, exhibitions and ideas driving the global art world.
Learn more about Ocula Magazine
Showcasing the best of the art world.
Ocula partners with galleries from around the world to highlight their artists, artworks and exhibitions. Gallery membership is by application and invitation, with each member vetted by an independent panel.
Learn more about Ocula Membership
Specialises in the sale of major artworks.
Led by a team with deep ties to the world’s leading auction houses, galleries and collectors. Ocula’s advisory team offers bespoke services to high-net-worth clients from around the world who are looking to acquire the best of contemporary and modern art.
Learn more about our team and services