Online

Nina Katchadourian

In Focus

Nov 19 – Dec 23, 2021

In conjunction with the in-person exhibition Nina Katchadourian: Natural Selection, on view at Pace’s Hong Kong space from November 19 to December 23, the gallery is presenting a selection of new works by the artist as part of its online In Focus series. This digital presentation features sculptures from Katchadourian’s Fake Plants (2021) series, including four online-exclusive pieces. 

Nina Katchadourian, Plant #41, 2021, glass vase, paper-covered wire, gouache, product packaging, 14-9/16" × 16-15/16" × 3-15/16" (37 cm × 43 cm × 10 cm)
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #4, 2021, ceramic soap dish, scrubber sponge, paper-covered wire, N95 mask fragments, ping pong ball pieces, polystyrene foam beads, 12-3/16" × 5-1/8" × 3-1/8" (31 cm × 13 cm × 8 cm)

I want someone looking at the plants to have two experiences at the same time: they can recognize a lot of what these materials are—and recognize them for the very unspectacular materials that they are—and at the same time, to be looking at something very transformed.

Nina Katchadourian
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #9, 2021, scrubber sponge, spaghetti, orange rubber paint, 8-11/16" × 5-1/8" × 3-1/8" (22 cm × 13 cm × 8 cm)
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #8, 2021, ceramic soap dish, pumice block, paper-covered wire, crepe paper, rubber tip from dental brush, glass-head pin, 9-13/16" × 8-11/16" × 8-11/16" (25 cm × 22 cm × 22 cm)

The Hong Kong exhibition focuses on the artist’s “uninvited collaborations with nature” that reflect her interest in relationships between human and non-human animals as well as the contradictory implications of the word “natural.” Katchadourian’s new Fake Plants body of work, which she created during the pandemic, comprises sculptures of multifarious plant forms based on her recollection and imagination rather than the specific characteristics of existing species. These works were created with cast-off materials like cardboard boxes and toilet paper tubes, Styrofoam, sponges, disposable medical masks, sewing pins, toothpicks, and more. 

Nina Katchadourian, Plant #36, 2021, Glass vase, cardboard toilet paper tubes, kitchen wipes, foam, plastic netting, golf ball, wooden forks, 18-7/8" × 5-1/8" × 5-1/8" (48 cm × 13 cm × 13 cm)
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #18, 2021, ceramic eggcup, ping pong ball, crepe paper, plastic bag fragments, white plastic twist ties, black plastic netting, 13" × 7-7/8" × 7-7/8" (33 cm × 20 cm × 20 cm)

There's an element of research that has to happen with my hands. I have to actually hold a thing and turn it around and look at it and arrange it in space for me to really understand what it is.

Nina Katchadourian
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #24, 2021, ceramic bowl, kitchen sponges, crepe paper, tennis ball, metallic foil from product packaging, monofilament, polystyrene balls, 7-1/16" × 8-11/16" × 5-1/2" (18 cm × 22 cm × 14 cm)
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #23, 2021, ceramic bowl, scrubber pad, felt, ping pong ball, toothpicks, ink, glass-head pin, 5-1/8" × 4-3/4" × 5-1/8" (13 cm × 12 cm × 13 cm)

In an interview with Pace, Katchadourian said, “I want someone looking at the plants to have two experiences at the same time: they can recognize a lot of what these materials are—and recognize them for the very unspectacular materials that they are—and at the same time, to be looking at something very transformed.”

Nina Katchadourian, Plant #10, 2021, ceramic eggcup, ping pong ball, polystyrene beads, steamer paper, shredded kitchen wipes, 6-5/16" × 5-1/8" × 5-1/8" (16 cm × 13 cm × 13 cm)
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #14, 2021, ceramic eggcup, paper drinking straws, pom poms, glass-head pin, shredded kitchen wipe, salt, 7-1/16" × 3-1/8" × 3-9/16" (18 cm × 8 cm × 9 cm)

I often let the materials take the lead. I often let them show me what they do naturally, and I try to work along those lines.

Nina Katchadourian
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #39, 2021, cardboard, clay pebbles, cardboard toilet paper tubes, crepe paper, ping pong balls, glass-head pins, 35-7/16" × 15-3/4" × 15-3/4" (90 cm × 40 cm × 40 cm)
Nina Katchadourian, Plant #30, 2021, ceramic bowl, cardboard toilet paper tubes, synthetic fur, felt, wooden forks, paint, ping pong ball, glass-head pins, salt, 10-1/4" × 5-1/8" × 5-1/8" (26 cm × 13 cm × 13 cm)

To inquire about any of the works featured in this exhibition, or about more works by the artist, please email us at inquiries@pacegallery.com.

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About the Artist

Nina Katchadourian (b. 1968, Stanford, California) is an interdisciplinary artist whose work includes video, performance, sound, sculpture, photography, and public projects. Her video Accent Elimination was included at the 2015 Venice Biennial in the Armenian pavilion, which won the Golden Lion for Best National Participation.

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  • Past, Nina Katchadourian, In Focus, Nov 19, 2021