Opening reception: Thursday 8 February, 5 to 7 pm
Anthony Meier is pleased to present our second solo exhibition by West Coast Light and Space pioneer Larry Bell (b. 1939) on view from February 8 to April 12, 2024. Continuing Bell’s adept utilization of glass and light, which enables him to broaden the visual and physical realms of perception through his sculptures, this exhibition will feature a new large-scale work that debuts a wholly new composition amongst his oeuvre as well as a monumental installation. In shades of red and blue, these works evidence his iconic methodology characterized by endless spontaneity, intuition, and improvisation.
Transforming the entire gallery, a monumental laminated glass sculpture titled Pacific Reds II (2017)—comprising six chevrons in various shades of red—will be presented in a site-specific, improvisational configuration that evidences the artist’s hand in his continued reactiveness to the specificities of location. Previously exhibited at Pepperdine University, Pacific Reds II will now respond to its new site via a wholly new arrangement that channels the sun pouring in from skylights above to pass through Bell’s six chevrons in a capacity that refracts light through the glass painting the walls, floor, and ceiling all shades of red.
The tantalizing play of light and shadow that manifests via Bell’s room-sized installation will be accompanied by a newly conceived and realized work in the front window vitrine. In the artist’s classic play on words, this work of nesting trioliths in lapis blue and sea salt titled Mill Valley Study (2023), exemplifies the first composition of its kind by the artist in his over five decade career and thus evidences his ongoing dedication to pushing the limits of perception and technology through an exploration of new treatments, forms, and arrangements.
This exhibition coincides with Bell’s inclusion in Day Jobs at the Cantor Arts Center—the first major exhibition to examine the overlooked impact of day jobs in the visual arts—on view from March 6 to July 21, 2024; and will be followed by a solo exhibition at the Phoenix Art Museum opening May 22, 2024, and a major outdoor commission for North Carolina State University’s Centennial Campus––the largest and most ambitious public artwork of his lifetime––to be unveiled in Spring 2024.
A conversation between Larry Bell and Veronica Roberts, Director of the Cantor Arts Center, will take place in person at 6pm on February 8, 2024 at the gallery.
Check gallery website for hours and additional info
