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What You Need to Know: Marian Goodman Gallery—which has represented Tony Cragg for more than 40 years—is currently presenting the first solo show of work by the artist at its Los Angeles location. On view through June 29, the exhibition features recent sculptures made in bronze, wood, stone, and steel, as well as a selection of works on paper. The works on view are installed throughout the galleries as well as within the lobby and garden of the space, offering an immersive experience for visitors to the show, and highlighting Cragg’s singular artistic vision and skill across mediums.
About the Artist: Born in Liverpool, England, and based in Wuppertal, Germany, since 1977, Tony Cragg is recognized as one of the leading sculptors of today, with a practice and body of work centered on an explorative approach to medium and the development of a unique sculptural lexicon. Drawing is also an essential part of Cragg’s practice, not only frequently serving as a starting point for his monumental sculptures, but also a standalone endeavor that allows the artist to tap into experimental ideas around the concrete. Cragg has been the subject of more than 100 solo exhibitions worldwide, with the most recent institutional solo, “Please Touch!” on view at the Museum Kunstpalast Düsseldorg through May 26, 2024. Cragg’s work is also currently featured in a special exhibition at Castle Howard in England through September 22, 2024.
Why We Like It: Cragg’s fascination with the physical materials of his practice has propelled him to the forefront of contemporary sculpture and is emphasized within the present exhibition through the diverse array of materials shown and juxtaposed with each other. High polished stainless steel, patinated bronze, bog oak wood, Corten steel, and portero stone are a number of the materials included in the show, and across each work Cragg leverages the respective medium’s qualities to shape abstract, evocative new forms. The sheer boundlessness of the artist’s vision is also brought to the fore through the diversity of works; though Cragg frequently returns to the same medium, no two works are exactly alike, with each offering through compositional means insight into his artistic lines of inquiry.
See inside the exhibition and featured works below.
Installation view of “Tony Cragg” (2024). Photo: Elon Schoenholz. Courtesy of Marian Goodman Gallery, Los Angeles.
Tony Cragg, In No Time (2018). Photo: Elon Schoenholz. Courtesy of the artist and Marian Goodman Gallery.
Installation view of “Tony Cragg” (2024). Photo: Elon Schoenholz. Courtesy of Marian Goodman Gallery, Los Angeles.
Tony Cragg, Hedge (2023). Photo: Elon Schoenholz. Courtesy of Marian Goodman Gallery, Los Angeles.
Tony Cragg, Stages (2021). Photo: Elon Schoenholz. Courtesy of Marian Goodman Gallery, Los Angeles.
“Tony Cragg” is on view at Marian Goodman Gallery, Los Angeles, through June 29, 2023.
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