THING

New Sculptures from Los Angeles

February 6, 2005 - June 5, 2005

: Matt Johnson Breadface 2004 Cast plastic with oil paint. Courtesy of the artist and Taxter & Spengemann, New York. Photo by Joshua White.; THING 2005 Hammer Museum installation with work by Lara Schnitger, Andy Ouchi, and Jedediah Caesar (left to right). Photo by Joshua White.; THING 2005 Hammer Museum installation with work by Rodney McMillian, Kristen Morgin, Kaz Oshiro, and Joel Morrison (left to right). Photo by Joshua White.; THING 2005 Hammer Museum installation with work by Kaz Oshiro, Mindy Shapero, and Nathan Mabry (left to right). Photo by Joshua White.; Lauren Bon Wise Elders 2005 View of the artist's studio with work in progress. Photo by Joshua White.; Jedediah Caesar 1,000,000 A.D. 2004 Detail. Mixed Media. Collection of Craig Robins, Miami Beach, Florida.; Kate Costello Untitled 2003 Paper, concrete and wood. Courtesy the artist.; Krysten Cunningham Matter Sucks Matter 2004 Sisal rope, spray paint, steel, plywood, latex paint, zebrawood. Courtesy of the artist. Photo by Joshua White.; Hannah Greely Muddle 2004 Coconut fiber, silicone glue. Astrup Fearnley Collection, Oslo, Norway. Photo by Joshua White.; Taft Green Reaction Facets: International Seaport; Port 1 of 2; energy distribution, holding light, memory of Vermeer 2004 Domestic and imported hardwoods, paint, steel, fabric. Courtesy of the artist and Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles. Photo by Joshua White.; Aragna Ker In the spaces of multiplicity 2004 Mixed media. Courtesy of the Artist. Photo by Gene Ogami.; Olga Koumoundouros Sagamore: The Good Life 2005 Detail. PVC, wire, Hydrocal, spray foam, newspaper, vermiculite. Courtesy of the artist and Adamski Gallery for Contemporary Art, Aachen, Germany.; Renee Lotenero La Piazza Tenera 2005 Handmade tiles, photographs, grape vines, Plexiglas, lacquer paint, steel, paper, found objects. Courtesy of the artist. Photo by Joshua White.; Nathan Mabry A Touching Moment (Tooting My Own Horn) 2005 Terra-cotta, wood, paint. Courtesy of the artist and cherrydelosreyes, Los Angeles. Photo by Joshua White.; Rodney McMillian Untitled (Silver Balloon) 2004 Clay, acrylic, glue. Collection of Jeffrey Kerns, Los Angeles. Photo by Gene Ogami.; Chuck Moffit eros bruises thanatos 2005 Cast iron, steel, aluminum, carbon fiber, foam, lambskin, wood. Collection of the artist. Photo by Joshua White.; Kristen Morgin Sweet and Low Down 2004 Unfired clay, wood, wire, cement, glue. Collection of the artist.; Joel Morrison Untitled 2005 Stainless steel. Collection of J. Ben Bourgeois. Photo by Joshua White.; Michael O'Malley Untitled Object 11.04 2004 From the series The Fantastic Interior. Hydrocal, steel, polystyrene foam. Courtesy of the artist and cherrydelosreyes, Los Angeles. Photo by Joshua White.; Kaz Oshiro Pink Marshall Stack Wall (Three Marshall Double Stacks) 2002 Acrylic and Bondo on stretched canvas. Collection of Peter Norton, Santa Monica. Photo by J.J. Stratford, courtesy of Rosamund Felsen Gallery, Santa Monica.; Andy Ouchi This is what I was talking about 2004 Detail. MDF, Plexiglas, oil, acrylic paint. Courtesy of the artist. Photo by Joshua White.; Lara Schnitger Betty Ford 2004 Work in progress. Lycra, fur, wood, pearls, pins. Courtesy of the artist and Anton Kern Gallery, New York. Photo by Joshua White.; Mindy Shapero The orb (it exists behind your eyes and you only see it when you die and it tells you everything you always wanted to know) 2004 Coloraid, paper. Courtesy of the artist and Anna Helwing Gallery, Los Angeles.

"'THING: New Sculpture from Los Angeles' is the best museum survey of new art that I've seen in a very long time."
-Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times

About the Exhibition

Including work by 20 Los-Angeles-based artists, THING uncovers the most innovative contemporary sculpture from the up-and-coming generation. Probing the formal and conceptual trajectories of sculpture in Los Angeles, THING includes a broad selection of works and addresses a wide range of sculptural practices, attempting to make sense of new materials, forms, methods, and concerns of this promising generation of emerging Angeleno artists. THING offers viewers a chance to examine how the vital and provocative sculpture being produced by L.A.’s younger set extends local traditions and lineages, and also taps into and shapes broader cultural streams. As Los Angeles has become a defining force in international contemporary art, the exhibition, though focusing on Los Angeles, provides a compelling view into the state of sculpture today.

THING: New Sculpture from Los Angeles is organized by a curatorial team led by James Elaine, curator of Hammer Projects with co-curators Aimee Chang, curatorial assistant at the Hammer Museum, and Christopher Miles, an independent curator/critic and assistant professor at California State University, Long Beach.

THING: New Sculpture from Los Angeles is sponsored by The Fellows of Contemporary Art.

Additional support provided by the Murray and Ruth Gribin Foundation and The Fifth Floor Foundation.