Los Angeles-based artist Jake Vanden Berge is showcasing a new solo exhibition at London’s lbf contemporary. I Made My Bed of Flowers And Now I Have to Step In It marks his UK debut, presenting a suite of new paintings that reference his experiences growing up in Los Angeles’ Whittier suburb, while simultaneously exploring the canons of art history, juxtaposing his own modern interpretation on memory and nostalgia.
Vanden Berge often distills thoughts in ghostly split-cell compositions made of oil and inkjet on canvas, such as the cropped images of a woman’s lips and a subdued field of tulips with more aggressive images of a doberman ready to attack. He purposefully looks to spark tension between disparate imagery as a survey into perception, prompting the onlooker to realign their gaze to the images and objects that inundate the everyday.
Amongst the six new paintings and interactive sound piece, Vanden Berge revisits William Etty’s voyeuristic work, Nymph and Satyr (1828), adding his own contemporary spin in the form of feminine undertones and vibrant, floral landscapes. “Vanden Berge’s works distill the quiet beauty of everyday moments,” wrote lbf, “challenging viewers to reflect on the fragility of memory and the unique resonance of personal history.”
I Made My Bed of Flowers And Now I Have to Step In It will be on view in London until December 14, 2024.
lbf contemporary
13 Tottenham Mews,
London W1T 4AQ
