CORY REYNOLDS | DATE 5/25/2019

Mona Kuhn in conversation and signing 'She Disappeared into Complete Silence' at Arcana: Books on the Arts

Saturday, May 25, from 4–6 PM, photographer Mona Kuhn will appear in conversation with noted fiction writer, cultural critic and urban historian Norman Klein at Arcana: Books on the Arts in Culver City. Following the discussion, Kuhn will sign copies of her new Steidl book, She Disappeared into Complete Silence.

Acclaimed for her intimate nudes, Mona Kuhn takes a new direction into abstraction in her latest series. Photographed at a golden modernist structure on the edge of Joshua Tree National Park, architectural lines, light reflections and a single figure have been carefully balanced against the backdrop of the Californian desert.

The human figure in these images—Kuhn’s friend and collaborator Jacintha—emerges like a surrealist mirage, fragmented and indistinct, at times submerged in shadows or overexposed. The building’s facades of glass and mirrors serve as optical planes, an extension of the artist’s camera and lens. Light is split into refracting colors, desert vegetation grows sideways, inside is outside and outside in. Kuhn pushes a certain disorienting effect by introducing metallic foils as an additional surface, at times producing purely abstract results. The work marks Kuhn’s increasing use of techniques that appear to merge the figure, abstraction and landscape into one.

Mona Kuhn (born 1969) is best known for her large-scale, dreamlike photographs of the human form. Her pictures often reference classical themes with a light and insightful touch. Kuhn’s approach to her work is distinguished by the close relationships she develops with her subjects, resulting in images of remarkable naturalness and intimacy. Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Kuhn lives and works in Los Angeles.

If you cannot attend this event, but would like to purchase a signed copy of She Disappeared into Complete Silence, please place your order here, or call Arcana at 310-458-1499.

Arcana: Books on the Arts
Saturday, May 25: 4–6PM
8675 Washington Boulevard
Culver City, California 90232
Telephone 310-458-1499