Liz Larner

Regen Projects is pleased to present an exhibition of new sculptures by Los Angeles-based artist Liz Larner. The exhibition brings together her recent navigations of geological poiesis, fissures, folds, curves, and reconfigurations, and includes wall-mounted ceramic slabs, a large stainless steel X sculpture, two paper-based planchette pieces, early photographs, and a new "culture" sculpture. Larner has shown at Regen Projects since 1989, and this presentation marks her seventh solo exhibition at the gallery.

Larner's ceramic sculptures evoke telluric interruptions from the geological depths caesura,subduction, inflexion, mantle, and passage. The ceramic forms support richly chromatic surfaces reminiscent of the earth's shifting crust. The resulting objects hover in front of the wall, and are painterly and sculptural at once.

The exhibition features X, a large stainless steel sculpture that follows from earlier works also using this motif. This open form encases the contour of an unidentified, solid object. Combining digital modeling technology with traditional modes of sculpture, X continues Larner's investigation into open form and the use of line to create volume.

Other large format sculptures include two planchettes, one free-standing and the other wall mounted. Furthering Larner's interest in the dialogue between color and form, the sculptures initially appear homogenous, while on closer inspection reveal varied surfaces and textures,creating spatial ambiguity. Embodying forms both anthropomorphic and geometric, the sculptures have a visual density that is at odds with their material constitution. The planchettes shift, transform, and refract depending on the viewer's physical relation to the work.

Also on view are photographs from Larner's 1987 Tropicana Hotel series and a new "culture" piece. Consisting of a petri dish filled with agar inoculated with materials gathered from disparate collection sites, these elements result in a unique culture that literally blooms and decays throughout the duration of the exhibition.

Liz Larner (b. 1960) received her BFA from the California Institute of the Arts in 1985. She lives and works in Los Angeles.

Larner has been the subject of several solo museum exhibitions, including Two or Three or Something: Maria Lassnig, Liz Larner, Kunsthaus Graz, Graz (2006); Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (2001-02); MAK, Austrian Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna (1998); and Kunsthalle Basel, Basel (1997). Selected group exhibitions include Damage Control, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C. (2013-14); Blues for Smoke, Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (2012-13); Under Destruction, Museum Tinguely, Basel (2010-11); and the International Biennial of Contemporary Art of Seville The Unhomely: Phantom Scenes in Global Society, Seville (2006-07).

Work by the artist is held in prominent international collections, including Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C.; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco; La Coleccíon Jumex, Mexico City; and Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, among others.

An opening reception for the artist will be held on Saturday, January 11, from 6:00 – 8:00 pm.

For all press inquiries, and to RSVP to the press preview, please contact Ben Thornborough at +1 310 276 5424.

For all other inquiries, please contact Jennifer Loh, Jane McCarthy, Lindsay Charlwood, or Mathew Sova at Regen Projects.