Richard Misrach - Photographs New York Thursday, April 8, 2021 | Phillips

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  • "I was drawn to the fragility and grace of the human figure in the landscape…paradise has become an uneasy dwelling place; the sublime sea frames our vulnerability, the precarious nature of life itself."
    —Richard Misrach
    Robert Misrach’s series On the Beach engages with the pervasive sense of physical and psychological vulnerability Americans felt in the wake of the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Employing an aerial perspective achieved from a hotel room window, Misrach eliminated the horizon line and created a sense of isolation surrounding the swimmers and sunbathers within the vastness of the landscape below. A subtle feeling of uneasiness grows when looking at Untitled #704-03 at length – shadows seem to lengthen and the lone figure in the sand combines to create this scene of voyeurism. On the Beach demonstrates Misrach’s incredible ability to capture the metaphysical connection between humans and their environment.  

    • Provenance

      Marc Selwyn Fine Art, Los Angeles

    • Literature

      Misrach, On the Beach, pl. 7
      Misrach, Chronologies, pl. 124

    • Artist Biography

      Richard Misrach

      American • 1949

      Known for his ethereal depictions of the American Southwest and stunning use of color, Richard Misrach photographs dramatic land and seascapes, and, more recently, produces breathtakingly complex abstractions. Misrach's work engages with traditional ideas of the sublime landscape, as their immense beauty engulfs both the subjects in his photographs as well as the viewer.

      On the Beach, one of Misrach's most famous series, features spectacular aerial images of the sea and beach that convey both the vulnerability and preciousness of life. One of the most pervasive themes present in his work is the relationship between humans and their environment, depicting our impact on the world through feats of engineering as in his Golden Gate Bridge series, and with his Desert Cantos with nuclear testing in the American desert. 

      View More Works

125

Untitled #704-03

2003
Chromogenic print, printed 2007, flush-mounted.
70 x 110 in. (177.8 x 279.4 cm)
Overall 75 x 115 in. (190.5 x 292.1 cm)

Signed, titled, dated and numbered 5/5 in ink on a label affixed to the reverse of the frame.

Full Cataloguing

Estimate
$50,000 - 70,000 

Contact Specialist

Sarah Krueger
Head of Department, Photographs

Vanessa Hallett
Worldwide Head of Photographs and Deputy Chairman, Americas

 

Photographs

New York Auction 8 April 2021