It appeared a like a totem of survival, assertive and singular, a sequoia after a forest hearth. Mark Whalen, who misplaced his house within the Altadena hearth that ravaged the japanese portion of Los Angeles in early 2025, and his physique of labor, Lighthouse, have the context of energy and fortitude, but in addition one thing fairly private and reflective. The centerpiece 16-foot sculpture, created as a fee for Pink Automotive and a part of a gaggle of sculptures proven as a part of a presentation with Harper’s for Frieze Week in LA, reveals what Whalen has as a storyteller: the stacking of items of a thought, they method an entire comes along with the disparate items of a puzzle to make do from. The works are a couple of transformation, but in addition the susceptible, meandering worries and ideas we have now as tragedy takes over our actuality. —Evan Pricco
Harper’s presents Lighthouse, a particular exhibition by Mark Whalen at 1650 Euclid Road, Santa Monica.
