Kim Abeles

• Hope Chest 2014-2021 Every single bit and scrap of trash that I generated in one month. The items were cut, folded or shredded, composted, and assembled. The woven elements retain a recognition of the packaging: the almond milk package is kept together, or the candy wrapper, or the sparkling water bottle. Hope Chest is the central element of a paper bag landscaped table that includes red wiggler worms offered to viewers to prompt them to compost.
• Presidential Commemorative Smog Plates 1992 Particulate matter (smog) on porcelain plates; portraits of U.S. presidents with their quotes about pollution and industry; the plates were left out longer depending on their environmental records 10.5” x 10.5”
• Dinner for Two in One Month of Smog 2011 Smog (particulate matter) on porcelain dinnerware and linen 38" x 49" x 28" Installation at Museum of Arts and Design, New York
• Paper Person 2010 Sculpture made from paper trash that was generated by visitors to California Science Center (CSC) on Earth Day 2009 5' x 40' x 48' Collection of the California Science Center, Los Angeles
• Cabinet of Wondering 2014 Constructed wall with videos and cases of specimens embedded flush to the photographic paper 10’ x 8’ x 2’ Commissioned by the Harn Museum of Art and funded in part by the Center for Cultural Innovation
• Waiting/Watching 2012 Video monitors and photographs embedded in mural-size images of lichens 8' x 16' Presented by Ecoarts Connections and the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History
• Shared Skies and 60 Days of Los Angeles Sky Patch (View to the East) 2012-14; 1993 Shared Skies is a large series and shown here are digital prints of skies collected from individuals globally (each photographer is credited and the locations are identified); Printed by Sundog Multiples, University of North Dakota Sky Patch replicated the sky color for 60 days as acrylics on paper Size variable Installation view at the Museum of Art and History, Lancaster, CA
• Leaf Lounge (All the World's Leaves) III 2011 450 fabric leaves made five times their normal size, embroidered with the names of the trees and locations globally; video; sound; dried lavender in pillows for scent 8' x 12' x 12' Location at the Frank M. Doyle Arts Pavilion, Orange Coast College, Costa Mesa, CA Versions of this piece were created for the Center for Contemporary Art, Cincinnati (2000-2), and Songzhuang, China (2007).
• Walk a mile in my shoes 2014 Two repurposed traffic islands on Rodeo Rd and Martin Luther King Blvd/Rodeo Rd and Jefferson Blvd, Los Angeles Photographic tiles showing Images of shoes belonging to Civil Rights marchers and colleagues of Dr. King from the collection of Xernona Clayton in Atlanta. Site 2 is shoes the shoes of activists local to Los Angeles; handmade pavers, mixed media elements, poetry by Beverly LaFontaine, and drought-resistant plants complete the artwork. 700 square feet, and 20,000 square feet for site 2 Permanent public art commissioned by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs and Department of Public Works
• Valises for Camp Ground: Arts, Corrections and Fire Management in the Santa Monica Mountains Kim Abeles in collaboration with inmates at Conservation Camp 13 2017-18 Various sizes and mediums; 10 hand-made functional suitcases The sculptural and instructional valises are used by the National Park Service, Los Angeles County Fire Department, and educators to teach about fire prevention in relation to urban development adjacent to wilderness.