Kenneth Price or Ken Price (1935-2012) was an American artist who was well-known for his ceramic sculptures in biomorphic blobs and sliced geodes forms. Besides sculptural works, Price was also interested in drawing, especially comics and animation, since his young age.
Ken Price, “Lorna Diving”, 1981. Courtesy of Artist and Louis Stern Fine Arts. https://www.louissternfinearts.com/
The subject matter of Price’s drawings ranges from his surroundings, cityscapes, state of mind, Mexican-folk pattern, to comic characters. He also depicts uncanny objects, such as in Purple Interior with Sculpture, 1990 and New Pole Position, 1988. Besides drawing on paper, Price also explores another medium, like glazed ceramics (Untitled Plate, 1972-77, Bowl – Cityscape, 1991). Price’s drawings are soothing but also thought-provoking.
Ken Price, “Purple Interior with Sculpture”, 1990. Courtesy of Artist and Louis Stern Fine Arts https://www.louissternfinearts.com/
Ken Price, “Untitled Plate, 1972-77. Courtesy of Artist and Louis Stern Fine Arts. https://www.louissternfinearts.com/
Ken Price was inspired by his hometown of Los Angeles. Price returned to L.A.for a few years in the early 1990s, after he spent a long time in Taos and New Bedford, Massachusetts. At that period, he painted “Traffic blanketed in smog”, “Belching smokestacks”, and “Suburban sprawl silhouetted”. Also, he drew amoeba-like objects at that time. Price was also influenced by Mexican ceramics from Tonalà and Oaxaca, geology contours, erotic objects, and surf culture.
Ken Price’s drawings are on view under the title “Ken Price: Works on Paper”, through July 31, 2021, at Louis Stern Fine Arts, Los Angeles, CA.
Ken Price, Bowl – Cityscape, 1991 Courtesy of Artist and Louis Stern Fine Arts. https://www.louissternfinearts.com/