Artists Working Now: Laura Owens
Paula Burleigh, senior teaching fellow, Whitney Museum of American Art

Laura Owens (b. 1970) was critical to the re–emergence of painting in the 21st century art world, and her work continues to challenge the core facets of the medium’s identity. For example, while we might typically think of paintings as autonomous objects, Owens has developed a practice in which paintings both implicate and respond to their sites of production and display. Looking at the development of her work since graduating from CalArts in 1994, we will see how she considers perceived conventions of taste through engaging with themes of kitsch, cuteness, craft, sincerity, and irony. Owens’ work also opens questions of how and whether the medium can and should expand in response to new technologies, one of the most pervasive questions for artists working today.

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