Californian Forests: Sam Falls at Hammer Museum, Los Angeles
For California Flora (National Forest Condensation Wall), Los Angeles-based artist Sam Falls traveled to all nineteen National Forests in California to create a map of sorts that depicts the state’s flora, from the ocean to the desert, from volcanic topography to the forest floor. Displayed together, the works are an immersive yet intimate portrait of the state of California that speak to the incredible heterogeneity of the landscape while compelling us to appreciate, care for, and maintain our invaluable ecosystems. The exhibition is on view at the Hammer Museum from December 16, 2017, through April 29, 2018.
"Presenting works that both depict Californian nature and involve it in their creation, Sam Falls has an exciting new exhibition opening in Los Angeles. The upcoming exhibition will see the walls of the museum space lined with splendorous landscape paintings inspired by California’s National Forests. The Hammer Museum is hosting the exhibition, which open on December 16, 2017 and runs into Spring 2018.
Sam Falls, a Los Angeles-based artist, traveled to all 19 National Forests in California and took up the project of creating a series of incredible artwork that depicts the state’s exotic flora — the ocean, the desert, volcanic topographies and lush forest floors. In the works that would be showcased, Falls covers large canvases with the colors of nature from the sites he visits — simple components of nature, like Ponderosa pine trees, California buckwheat, deer fern, and wild bluegrass, act as catalysts to the works he creates. He sprinkles a layer of dry pigments on the canvases in hues of vibrant blues and bright yellows or earthy tones, and then leaves them outside, exposed to the environment overnight. The condensation from rain or dew covers the surfaces in a process, not unlike that used to create a photogram, requiring exposure over time so that only silhouettes of the flora remain amid beautiful washes of color. This series is an immersive yet intimate portrait of the state of California. It speaks of the incredible heterogeneity of landscapes while compelling the onlooker to appreciate, care for, and maintain the invaluable ecosystems.
Sam Falls previously had solo exhibitions in galleries such as Galerie Eva Presenhuber, New York (2017); Galleria Franco Noero, Turin (2017); Hannah Hoffman Gallery, Los Angeles (2016); The Kitchen, New York (2015); Ballroom Marfa, Texas (2015); Pomona College Museum of Art, California (2014); Public Art Fund, New York (2014); LAXART, Los Angeles (2013); and Printed Matter, New York (2012).
The exhibition is on view From December 16, 2017, through April 29, 2018, at Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA."— Hilary Webb, Nov. 29, 2017
This post is an excerpt, read the full article at the Blouin Artinfo website.