Over the past 30 years Jungerman has woven thematic threads that are deeply connected to his birthplace, Suriname, placing fragments of Maroon textiles and other materials found in the African diaspora in direct contact with materials and imagery drawn from more “established” art traditions. Through this the artist presents a peripheral vision that enriches our perspective on art history. At the core of his practice, Jungerman uses kaolin clay and gridded textiles employed for rituals in the Afro-Surinamese Winti religion, harnessing their symbolic presence in his work. Winti people use the clay on their bodies for purification and wear specific fabric colour combinations that correlate with the four key elements: water, earth, air and forest. 

Titles for works come from sonic influences and geographical locations of Surinamese Maroon settlements. The ADIGA series is guided by the low-tone, 2 metre-long drum that is played for a ritual that is connected to the Earth. This animates each panel, encouraging the viewer to see the tempo in each line.

Remy Jungerman (1959, Moengo, Suriname) explores the intersection of pattern and symbol in Surinamese Maroon culture, the larger African diaspora, and 20th century Modernism. 

In 2022 Jungerman received the A.H. Heineken Prize for Art, the biggest visual art prize in the Netherlands.

From November 20, 2021 – April 10, 2022 he was the subject of a career survey show at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam titled Remy Jungerman: Behind the Forest. In 2019 he represented the Netherlands at the 58th Venice Biennale in 2019. In 2017 he was nominated for the Black Achievement Award in The Netherlands.

In 2008 he received the Fritschy Culture Award from the Museum het Domein, Sittard, The Netherlands.

Jungerman is co-founder and curator of the Wakaman Project, drawing Lines – connecting dots. Wakaman, which means “walking man,” was born out of a desire to examine the position of visual artists of Surinamese origin and to raise their profile(s) on the international stage.

Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, NL; 58th Venice Biennial, Dutch Pavilion, IT; Prospect3, New Orleans, US; Brooklyn Museum, New York, US; El Museo del Barrio, New York, US; Katonah Museum, New York, US; International African American Museum (IAAM), Charleston, US; Kunstmuseum, The Hague, NL; Wilhelm-Hack-Museum, Ludwigshafen, DE, Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg, DE; Goodman Gallery, London, GB, Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg, SA; Fridman Gallery, New York, US; Galerie Ron Mandos, Amsterdam; NL; Dots Gallery, Belgrade, RS; Rennie Museum, Vancouver, CA; Havana Biennale, CU; Museum Bamako, ML; Allard Pierson Museum, Amsterdam, NL, Amsterdam Museum, Amsterdam, NL; Centraal Museum, Utrecht, NL; Museum Arnhem, NL; Museum De Domeinen, Sittard, NL; Wereld Museum, Amsterdam, Leiden and Berg en Dal, NL; Zeeuws Museum, Leeuwarden, NL; Museum Tongerlohuys, Roosendaal, NL, Museum Tromso, NO; Stedelijk Museum Aalst, BE; Lumen Travo Gallery, Amsterdam, NL; Jack Shainman Gallery, New York, US; Hudson Valley MOCA, New York, US; New Jersey City University, New Jersey, US; Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, DE; Badischer Kunstverein, Karlsruhe, DE; Schloss Oberdiessbach, CH; Malba, Buenos Aires, AR; Cemeti Art House, Yogyakarta, ID; Gallery Krinzinger, Salzburg / Vienna, AT; Musée Art Contemporain, FR; Air de Paris, FR.

Jungerman attended the Academy for Higher Arts and Cultural Studies in Paramaribo, Suriname, before moving to Amsterdam where he studied at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy. He lives and works between Amsterdam and New York.