04/10/2025
Cleary reimagines archives from an expedition – an imagined journey beneath “an immense slab” (a fictionalized location first introduced in his recently published book, The Complex Number Zero). Under the slab, lies a cave system seldom explored, where one may discover the tension between exploration and ownership, discovery and the unknowable.
The archives (revealing what was seen, as well as what was obscured) and artifacts (perhaps used by previous explorers) render a speculative archaeology where light and darkness dictate the boundaries of perception. Light reveals, discovery follows, records are made, and what is documented becomes claimed.
Max Cleary
Divine Hammer
on view 24/7 through May 25
at The LINE LA
Open Studio & Artist Talk
Sunday, April 13
3—7 pm
rsvp link in bio
Torch i (necessary for the sublime)
2025
reclaimed ‘ohi’a, paper, custom hardware, walnut
20” x 4” x 8”
Torch ii (dowsing)
2025
reclaimed ‘ohi’a, paper, custom hardware, walnut
16” x 4” x 8”
Torch iii (once carried into the mouth)
2025
reclaimed ‘ohi’a, paper, custom hardware, walnut
14” x 6” x 9”
All works are available for purchase. For inquiries, email [email protected]
