Artist Sarah Sze's latest exhibition at Gagosian Beverly Hills is a masterclass in balance and tension, where the boundaries between order and chaos are constantly blurred. The show consists of just 13 pieces – 11 paintings and two video installations – but each one packs a punch.
Sze's fascination with landscapes as a means to organize space on canvas is evident, but she takes it a step further by radically altering them to create experiences that feel both familiar and fresh. "I want there to be just enough so that you're constantly reading it as a landscape, but you're still having to put it together," Sze reveals. The goal, she explains, is to get to a place where the work is talking back to the viewer.
Sze's inspiration for this body of work comes from our increasingly image-saturated world, where information and truth are constantly in question. She draws parallels with 19th-century pioneers like Eadweard Muybridge and Étienne-Jules Marey, who used images to prove physical concepts that we might not have noticed otherwise.
The six paintings on display are a kaleidoscope of colors – dusk blues, dawn yellows, and icy pastels – with bursts of light reminiscent of globular clusters of stars. They're visually cohesive yet contradictory, vibrating with movement yet feeling restful and contained. "I want this experience where you are teetering all the time – you're disoriented, and then you orient yourself and then you're disoriented again," Sze says.
The video installations, Sleepers and Feel Free, take on a more intimate tone. Sleepers is based on footage of Sze's daughters sleeping, capturing the vulnerability and tenderness of childhood. "There's a kind of real intimacy and tenderness when you see someone else asleep," she notes. Meanwhile, Feel Free explores how our brains construct images and experiences.
Sze hopes that her work will inspire viewers to tap into their own memories and explore the world from new perspectives. "I think paintings are super important right now because they are vehicles to see things in our own heads," she says. Ultimately, her exhibition is an invitation to engage with the creative process, both as a viewer and as a maker.
By harnessing the tension between order and chaos, Sze has created a show that will keep you on edge – yet somehow at peace. As she puts it, "A work of art is finished when everything teeters." And in this exhibition, nothing else does either.
Sze's fascination with landscapes as a means to organize space on canvas is evident, but she takes it a step further by radically altering them to create experiences that feel both familiar and fresh. "I want there to be just enough so that you're constantly reading it as a landscape, but you're still having to put it together," Sze reveals. The goal, she explains, is to get to a place where the work is talking back to the viewer.
Sze's inspiration for this body of work comes from our increasingly image-saturated world, where information and truth are constantly in question. She draws parallels with 19th-century pioneers like Eadweard Muybridge and Étienne-Jules Marey, who used images to prove physical concepts that we might not have noticed otherwise.
The six paintings on display are a kaleidoscope of colors – dusk blues, dawn yellows, and icy pastels – with bursts of light reminiscent of globular clusters of stars. They're visually cohesive yet contradictory, vibrating with movement yet feeling restful and contained. "I want this experience where you are teetering all the time – you're disoriented, and then you orient yourself and then you're disoriented again," Sze says.
The video installations, Sleepers and Feel Free, take on a more intimate tone. Sleepers is based on footage of Sze's daughters sleeping, capturing the vulnerability and tenderness of childhood. "There's a kind of real intimacy and tenderness when you see someone else asleep," she notes. Meanwhile, Feel Free explores how our brains construct images and experiences.
Sze hopes that her work will inspire viewers to tap into their own memories and explore the world from new perspectives. "I think paintings are super important right now because they are vehicles to see things in our own heads," she says. Ultimately, her exhibition is an invitation to engage with the creative process, both as a viewer and as a maker.
By harnessing the tension between order and chaos, Sze has created a show that will keep you on edge – yet somehow at peace. As she puts it, "A work of art is finished when everything teeters." And in this exhibition, nothing else does either.
This exhibition sounds really interesting! I love how the artist plays with balance and tension to create this unique experience for the viewer. The fact that each piece has a bit of chaos but also order to it is like trying to solve a puzzle, you know? 
It makes me think about our own world today, where we're constantly bombarded with information and images. I can see how Sze's work could help us look at things from new angles. 
What do you guys think about the artist's goal of making viewers feel like they need to piece together what they're seeing? Is it like a fun challenge or just a bit confusing? 
her videos are soooo emotional too esp sleepers its like ur right there with the little ones 
i love how she says art should make u question ur perceptions its like, that's what art is all about making us think & feel 
and thats why szes show is like a masterclass in balance n tension. i mean its like ur in this world of order but then its all like chaos again & thats what makes it so cool 
it's like she took all these beautiful landscapes and turned them into something entirely new. i love how she talks about blurring the lines between order and chaos - it's so true, sometimes you need a little bit of both to make life interesting 
capturing her daughters sleeping is just the most intimate thing. i feel like that's what art should be for - to tap into our own memories and emotions 
i mean, who else can make paintings that are both visually cohesive and contradictory at the same time? 
! She's absolutely killing the game with her masterclass in balance and tension 
. I mean, who needs reality when you can have a kaleidoscope of colors and bursts of light that make your head spin?! 
The way she's pushing the boundaries of what we consider "art" is truly inspiring - I want to go experience all her works as if they're my own memories 
... in a good way, of course! 
. And those video installations about her daughters sleeping? That's just weird, even for an art show 
. I'm not saying it's bad, per se, but is it really worth the hype? Can't we just appreciate a good landscape or something? 
she's like a master weaver of emotions and visuals, always keepin' us on our toes while still findin' that sweet spot of balance. and i love how she draws inspiration from the image-saturated world we live in - it's like she's sayin', "hey, we're all just tryin' to make sense of this crazy life, and art can be that bridge." her use of color and composition is like a breath of fresh air 
... and them video installations? 
. I think that's what makes it so mesmerizing! It's like she's taking these gorgeous landscapes and breaking them down into tiny little bits, only to reassemble them in weird and wonderful ways 
. And I can totally see why she'd want to explore how our brains construct images and experiences... have you ever tried to explain a dream to your kid? 
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. But what really gets me is how she's using this tension to explore our image-saturated world and make us question what's real and what's not 
. It's so cool to see her drawing parallels with old-school pioneers like Muybridge and Marey, who used images to prove physical concepts that we might have missed otherwise 
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! The six paintings on display are like a kaleidoscope of emotions – dusk blues, dawn yellows, icy pastels... it's like looking at a dreamy sunset 
. But what really caught my eye was the video installations, Sleepers and Feel Free 
. Capturing Sze's daughters sleeping is so tender and intimate, it's like you're right there in the room with them 
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. But at the same time, I think what I appreciate most is that she's not trying to give you all the answers or tell you exactly what to feel or think, she just leaves you with this sense of tension and uncertainty which I think is really powerful