Piston Head II: Artists Engage the Automobile July 30 – September 10 VENUS 601 South Anderson Street Los Angeles, CA 90023

July 30 – September 10

VENUS

601 South Anderson Street

Los Angeles, CA 90023

The exhibition includes works by César, Katherine Bernhardt, Matthew Day Jackson, Olivier Mosset, Richard Prince, Sterling Ruby, Peter Shire, Keith Haring, Will Boone, Lawrence Weiner, and Jonas Wood. Additionally, VENUS is delighted that Garage Italia Customs, the creative hub founded by Lapo Elkann and dedicated to tailor-made customizations, will personalize an Alfa Romeo 4C and a BMW i8 exclusively for the exhibition.

As the quintessential machine of modern life, the car has both shaped human experience and inspired countless artists over the years. With the power to convey status and identity, the automobile reflects the desires and dreams of its owners. The artists included in the exhibition have approached the car as both object and subject in numbers ways—from Olivier Mosset’s bikes decontextualized in the gallery space to Sterling Ruby’s caged-in bus to a quintessential Richard Prince muscle car. In a collision between the automobile and contemporary art, the exhibition explores the tensions between aesthetics and utility.

Adam Lindemann explains, “This art car show takes off where our Piston Head exhibition in Miami ended [Dec. 2013] and explores the intersection of art and cars, a space that VENUS has helped define. We have several amazing artists producing new work for the exhibition as well as several important and historic art cars on loan.”

Lapo Elkann adds, “I am happy that Garage Italia Customs and its creations have a role in VENUS’ exhibition alongside world-class artists. Adam Lindemann and I share a passion for incredible artistry, beauty and power of the automobile. The VENUS exhibition gives Garage Italia Customs the rare opportunity to evolve beyond its unique cars and focus on the potential for innovation that still exists within the space.”

In partnership with the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, VENUS is pleased to present a Keith Haring Land Rover (1983) which will be on view beginning July 30, in conjunction with the exhibition.

ABOUT VENUS

Founded in 2012 by Adam Lindemann, VENUS’ Manhattan space is dedicated to curated exhibitions both historic and contemporary, which cast a unique and often iconoclastic view on the work of established artists or artists whose works have been somewhat overlooked. The gallery continues to collaborate with prominent artists, foundations, estates, and galleries. VENUS’ Los Angeles gallery opened in May of 2015 and features a primary program in its 14,500 square foot exhibition space in the Downtown Arts District.

ABOUT GARAGE ITALIA CUSTOMS

Just as a custom-designed suit follows the lines of the body harmoniously, Garage Italia Customs aims at making unique vehicles—whether it be a car, motorbike, plane, helicopter, or yacht. It fulfills clients’ wishes with a tailor-made service that involves the study of detail, balance of components, and research of materials. The équipe working at Garage Italia Customs is made up of the best technicians specializing in the automotive sector, including the team that created the Tailor Made service for Ferrari. The “Maestros,” in Lapo Elkann’s words, are supported by the Style Centre—the heart of all activities. The Garage Italia Customs operational headquarters are located at 1 Via Alfredo Pizzoni, Milan, with plans to relocate to Piazzale Accursio in the near future.

ABOUT THE PETERSEN AUTOMOTIVE MUSEUM

The Petersen Automotive Museum was founded in 1994 by magazine publisher Robert E. Petersen, and his wife Margie with a mission to explore and present the history of the automobile and its impact on American life and culture, particularly through the lens of Los Angeles. Situated on the corner of Fairfax Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard, the third most traveled intersection in the city of Los Angeles, the museum anchors one end of the famed “Miracle Mile” created by real estate developer A. W. Ross in 1936. In 2015, the museum underwent an extensive $90 million renovation, through which the building’s façade was redesigned by the architectural firm Kohn Pedersen Fox. the museum recently reopened in December of 2015 and continues to present rotating exhibitions, with an emphasis on displaying vehicles in context.

VENUS

980 MADISON AVENUE NEW YORK, NY 10075  (212) 980 0700

601 SOUTH ANDERSON STREET LOS ANGELES, CA 90023 (323) 980 9000

WWW.VENUSOVERMANHATTAN.COM