Hauser & Wirth is selling a new print by the late American artist Mike Kelley from his quixotic Kandors series. Created between 1999 until the artist’s death in 2011, Kandor refers to the fictional home city of Superman, which was spared upon Krypton’s destruction from the comic’s chief villain, Brainiac.
The American artist used Kandor as a reference point to create sculptures and installations that reflect on opulence, loss and power. The Untitled photo reflective artwork changes as the viewer moves around the piece and features a magnified depiction of one of Kelley’s Lenticular sculptures. Surrounding the subject are plumes of smoke that are colored to create a dramatic comic-like feel.
Throughout his practice, Kelley observed that the depictions of Kandor were often inconsistent and contradictory throughout the comic series. His eerily lit sculptures reflect on the vestiges of memory, both pertaining to the comic’s narrative, along with the artist’s own life — emblematic of his Educational Complex (1995), an architectural model replica of all the academic institutions that Kelley ever attended, with the sections left blank for the ones he can’t remember.
Limited to an edition of 200 (plus 50 APs), Untitled sizes at 30 x 21 x 5 inches and is available to purchase online for $2,000 USD.
