Back in 1970, the Tate Gallery helped define a moment in American art history with its exhibition, ‘Three Artists From Los Angeles: Larry Bell, Robert Irwin, Doug Wheeler’. Those artists, as the exhibition demonstrated, had staked out new territory in the course of postwar art by taking on perception itself. Rather than working with paint and canvas or with steel and welders, they modulated light and space.
Now, three New York galleries have managed to bring that historical exhibition full circle in separate presentations devoted to each of those artists. Last year, Pace put on ‘Robert Irwin: Cacophonous’, a heavily trafficked show that featured new works with fluorescent light, while last week, David Zwirner opened ‘Doug Wheeler: Encasements’, bringing together five of his light environments into its New York space. Now, with Hauser & Wirth’s ‘Larry Bell: From the ‘60s’, the group has been fortuitously reunited (if only in nearly contemporaneous gallery listings).
On view until 9 April, the show is spread over three floors of the gallery’s Upper East Side space, providing a robust overview of Bell’s early work. A collection of paintings – geometric forms that set the stage for later three-dimensional experiments – introduce visitors to his language. This group includes Lil’ Orphan Annie, a seminal piece from 1960, created in bright orange acrylic.
On the second and third floors, several important three-dimensional works, including Standing Walls II, Untitled Trapezoid Improvisation, and Made for Arolsen I hold court, while his prism shelves animate the second floor. Throughout these upper floors, visitors are confronted with the idiosyncratic experiments in perception for which Bell is known. It's a welcome return.
Spread over three floors of the gallery’s Upper East Side space, it provides a robust overview of Bell’s early work. Pictured: Untitled, 1970
A detailed view of Bell’s prism shelves, Untitled, 1970
Among the works shown are a collection of paintings – geometric forms that set the stage for later three-dimensional experiments. Pictured left: Ghost Box, 1962. Right: Untitled, 1962
Another of Bell’s early paintings, Homage to Baby Judy, 1960
Visitors will be confronted with the experiments in perception for which Bell is known. Pictured: Glacier, 1999
‘Larry Bell: From the ‘60s’, along with Pace and David Zwirner’s recent Robert Irwin and Doug Wheeler shows, comprises a defacto regrouping of the conceptual triumverate that defined American art history with the Tate Gallery’s 1970 exhibition ‘Three Artists From Los Angeles: Larry Bell, Robert Irwin, Doug Wheeler’. Pictured: Larry Bell
INFORMATION
’Larry Bell: From the ‘60s’ is on view until 9 April. For more information, visit Hauser & Wirth’s website
Photography courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth
ADDRESS
Hauser & Wirth
32 East 69th Street
New York, NY 10021
-
A new coffee table book proves that one designer’s trash is another’s treasureThe Rizzoli tome, launching today (16 September 2025), delves into the philosophy and process of Retrouvius, a design studio reclaiming salvaged materials in weird and wonderful ways
-
A carbon-emission-busting house, yeast-biomass building, and more ‘Designs for a Cooler Planet’‘Designs for a Cooler Planet’ returns to Aalto University in Finland as part of the annual Helsinki design and architecture week, highlighting buildings, materials and solutions towards a better future
-
You can safely sit on Max Lamb’s ceramic chairs for 1882 LtdA new collaboration pushes the boundaries of design and ceramic manufacturing: ‘Crockery’ is on view at Gallery Fumi until 30 September 2025
-
Stephen Prina borrows from pop, classical and modern music: now MoMA pays tribute to his performance work‘Stephen Prina: A Lick and a Promise’ recalls the artist, musician, and composer’s performances, and is presented throughout MoMA. Prina tells us more
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekWith the return of back-to-school, it's back to business for the Wallpaper* team, who’ve been making the rounds at fashion pop-ups and pavilion launches. Elsewhere, we’ve been indulging in new literature and old restaurants, and taking in a farewell exhibition at a landmark gallery...
-
Curtains up, Kid Harpoon rethinks the sound of Broadway production ‘Art’He’s crafted hits with Harry Styles and Miley Cyrus; now songwriter and producer Kid Harpoon (aka Tom Hull) tells us about composing the music for the new, all-star Broadway revival of Yasmina Reza’s play ‘Art’
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekHere in the UK, summer seems to be fading fast. Moody skies and showers called for early-autumn rituals for the Wallpaper* team: retreating into the depths of the Tate Modern, slipping into shadowy cocktail bars, and curling up with a good book
-
Artists imbue the domestic with an unsettling unfamiliarity at Hauser & WirthThree artists – Koak, Ding Shilun and Cece Philips – bring an uncanny subversion to the domestic environment in Hauser & Wirth’s London exhibition
-
Richard Prince recontextualises archival advertisements in TexasThe artist unites his ‘Posters’ – based on ads for everything from cat pictures to nudes – at Hetzler, Marfa
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekAnother week, another flurry of events, opening and excursions showcasing the best of culture and entertainment at home and abroad. Catch our editors at Scandi festivals, iconic jazz clubs, and running the length of Manhattan…
-
The best Ruth Asawa exhibition is actually on the streets of San FranciscoThe artist, now the subject of a major retrospective at SFMOMA, designed many public sculptures scattered across the Bay Area – you just have to know where to look
