OBJECTS IN THE GARDEN

​​​​​​Merchant Modern, in collaboration with ORCA, is pleased to present Objects in the Garden, a group exhibition bringing together artists from Merchant Modern’s gallery program within ORCA’s showroom and gardens in Highland Park.

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Spanning sculpture, ceramics, painting, furniture, and material-based works, Objects in the Garden explores the relationship between contemporary art, landscape, architecture, and design. Rather than occupying a traditional gallery setting, works are thoughtfully placed throughout ORCA’s indoor and outdoor spaces—among planting, architectural elements, furniture, and the garden itself. Some works reveal themselves immediately while others are discovered gradually, inviting visitors to wander through the space and experience art in direct relationship with its surroundings.

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Curated by Merchant Modern, the exhibition reflects the gallery’s commitment to artists whose practices are grounded in material exploration, craftsmanship, process, and a sensitivity to place. Bringing together one-of-a-kind and handmade works across disciplines, the exhibition considers how objects can inhabit everyday environments and how their meaning shifts through proximity to landscape, architecture, and other forms of making.

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The collaboration finds a natural setting at ORCA, the California-based landscape design and outdoor product studio founded by landscape designer Molly Sedlacek. Known for creating immersive environments through expressive planting and the use of natural materials in their rawest forms, ORCA approaches the garden as a living space where architecture, design, and nature coexist. Objects in the Garden extends this philosophy, introducing contemporary artworks throughout the showroom and landscape to create unexpected encounters between object and place.

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Coinciding with LA Design Weekend, ORCA will host an Open House on Saturday, October 3, from 11:00 AM–4:00 PM, inviting collectors, designers, architects, and the wider Los Angeles creative community to explore the exhibition and showroom.

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Participating Artists

Mieko Akutsu, Ben Anderson, Alison Andersson, Elliot Bergman, Patrick Bonneau, Haley Ann Bradley, Vanessa Chow, Claverol Studio, Jonathan Cross, Marleigh Culver, Iris Delphine, Full Moon Ceramics, Jennelle Fong, Melinda Forster, Dana Funaro, Sara Marlowe Hall, Michael Harnish, Cheryl Humphreys, Shaniqwa Jarvis, Mambo Jambo, Tetsuo Kashiwada, Raina Lee, Clement Leonardo, Merchant Modern, Nicole Neu, ORCA, Polina Perl, Salamat, Rachel Schillander, Serpentine, Paige Stewart, Rachel Traub, Ren Von Hasseln, Anais Wade, Eric Wareheim, Shoshi Watanabe, Tania Whalen, and Skylar Hughes.

 

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