Edited by James Cohan. Text by Veronica Roberts, Susan Thompson. Interview by Hans Ulrich Obrist.
A handsome introduction to the acclaimed American painter's humorous and uncanny visual universe
American artist Mernet Larsen (born 1940) refers to her paintings not as “representations” but as “analogs,” which alludes to the manual technique she uses to plan them, arranging physical pieces on the canvas before committing to the composition. This term also acknowledges that the scenes in her paintings are constructed in her imagination rather than based on observation. Larsen’s paintings are both humorous and uncanny, depicting organic forms like the human figure in hard-edged geometric shapes. Though her paintings feature recognizable scenarios—office employees in a boardroom meeting, a couple reading in bed—her manipulation of the perspective transforms these banal moments into psychological dramas, hinting at the organized chaos that underlies everyday life. This monograph features work from the last 60 years of Larsen’s career, as well as an interview with the artist by Hans Ulrich Obrist and essays by the curators Susan Thompson and Veronica Roberts.
“Couple” (2005) is reproduced from 'Mernet Larsen'.
in stock $80.00
Free Shipping
UPS GROUND IN THE CONTINENTAL U.S. FOR CONSUMER ONLINE ORDERS
"Departure (after El Lissitzky)," 2019, is reproduced from Mernet Larsen, a staff favorite new release this week from Kerber. Susan Thompson writes, “To step into Mernet Larsen’s world is to step off a ledge. A self-avowed enemy of horizons, Larsen revels in disorientation. Toying with perspective and favoring inversion, her paintings reward the embrace of vertigo. Larsen’s organization of space momentarily scrambles the brain, drawing viewers’ attention to their own faculties of perception. Where is up and where is down, what is near and what is far, what am I seeing, and—perhaps most unnervingly—where am I?” continue to blog
FORMAT: Hbk, 9.5 x 12 in. / 188 pgs / 113 color. LIST PRICE: U.S. $80.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $109 ISBN: 9783735607522 PUBLISHER: Kerber AVAILABLE: 8/10/2021 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Active AVAILABILITY: In stock TERRITORY: NA LA ME
Published by Kerber. Edited by James Cohan. Text by Veronica Roberts, Susan Thompson. Interview by Hans Ulrich Obrist.
A handsome introduction to the acclaimed American painter's humorous and uncanny visual universe
American artist Mernet Larsen (born 1940) refers to her paintings not as “representations” but as “analogs,” which alludes to the manual technique she uses to plan them, arranging physical pieces on the canvas before committing to the composition. This term also acknowledges that the scenes in her paintings are constructed in her imagination rather than based on observation. Larsen’s paintings are both humorous and uncanny, depicting organic forms like the human figure in hard-edged geometric shapes. Though her paintings feature recognizable scenarios—office employees in a boardroom meeting, a couple reading in bed—her manipulation of the perspective transforms these banal moments into psychological dramas, hinting at the organized chaos that underlies everyday life.
This monograph features work from the last 60 years of Larsen’s career, as well as an interview with the artist by Hans Ulrich Obrist and essays by the curators Susan Thompson and Veronica Roberts.
