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Coverbild Vija Celmins
A flat lay view of a chaotic collage made from aged, black and white photographs and text from books. The layered images depict a variety of subjects, including a bombed building, an airplane, an explosion at sea, a radio telescope, the moon, a hand holding a gun, starry night skies, and ocean waves.
A black and white photograph of a cluttered artist's studio, filled with creative chaos. A painting rests on an easel in the center, surrounded by tables laden with art supplies, a globe, and wooden crates. The floor is strewn with papers, paint, and various objects, indicating an active workspace.
A side-by-side comparison of two artworks. On the left, a black-and-white painting of the August 20, 1965, Time magazine cover, headlined THE LOS ANGELES RIOT. On the right, a sculpture of a two-story house with its roof and upper windows engulfed in painted flames, and its siding stained with soot.
A black and white, photorealistic painting of a World War II-era American bomber in mid-flight against a dark, uniform sky. The twin-engine propeller plane is shown from a side profile, with the US star insignia visible on its fuselage and wing. A dark, ribbon-like form trails from the aircraft's tail.
A hyperrealistic black and white graphite drawing of a choppy sea viewed from above. The entire frame is filled with the intricate, textured detail of countless small waves and ripples, with highlights and shadows creating a strong sense of depth and movement. A white border is visible on the left edge.
A collection of over twenty stones and sculpted objects arranged on a white surface. The objects vary in shape and texture, including smooth grey pebbles, rough greenish rocks, and angular fragments of layered stone. Two larger, spherical objects are composed of a brown, rough bottom half and a speckled grey top half.
A two-page spread from an art book. On the left, a small black and white photo shows two abstract canvases on an easel in a studio. On the right, a large color image displays one of the artworks in detail: a vertical abstract painting with a highly textured surface, featuring mottled patterns of deep blue and creamy white that evoke a sense of weathered stone or ice.
A two-page spread showing a timeline in German. A central column lists years from 1938 to 1965, separating two columns of text. The left column describes biographical events, while the right column describes corresponding world events.
An open book showing a two-page spread with German text against a white background. The left page features a short, centered quote from Vija Celmins. The right page contains several paragraphs of text under the heading Vorwort.
A two-page spread from a book. The left page contains the heading Tafeln above two columns of text in English and German. The right page displays a gray-toned, realistic painting of two white gooseneck desk lamps with round shades, resting on a flat surface against a plain background.
A photorealistic charcoal drawing on paper of an intricate spiderweb. The web is shown from an angled perspective, its delicate, glowing threads creating a dense pattern of radial and spiral lines. The web stands out in bright contrast against a dark, grainy, and textured background, giving the artwork a dramatic, monochromatic feel.
A black and white photograph of a woman in a striped top standing in a spacious and cluttered artist's studio. The room is filled with canvases, an easel, paint supplies, and a scooter is visible in the brightly lit background.
A double-page spread from a book, written in German. The left page lists lenders under the heading Leihgeber. The right page lists partners and sponsors, and below that is a table of contents showing chapter titles, author names, and page numbers.
A book page displaying two separate, black-and-white photorealistic drawings. On the left, a drawing shows a postmarked envelope with stamps and a handwritten address. On the right, a drawing depicts a torn and creased photograph of a wide, flat landscape under a large, low cloud, with a plume of smoke visible on the horizon.
A horizontal, monochromatic print of a dense starfield against a dark, textured background. Countless white dots of various sizes and brightness are scattered across the composition, creating the impression of a vast night sky. The artwork is presented on paper with a white border.
An angled view of a hardcover book titled Vija Celmins on a white background. The book has a textured, mottled blue cover that resembles a starry night sky, with the title in white text on the front and spine.
An open book on a white surface displays a two-page spread with images of vintage appliances. On the left, a brown electric space heater with glowing orange coils sits against a dark background. On the right, a closed, round, silver-colored pizzelle maker rests on a light gray surface against a dark wall.
An open book on a white surface displays two black and white images of the night sky. The left page shows a comet with a long, bright tail streaking through a field of stars. The right page shows a dense, star-filled sky.
An overhead shot of an open art book on a white surface. The left page displays a small, mounted black-and-white photograph of a rough, rocky texture. The right page features a full-bleed, grainy, magnified version of the same abstract, cratered surface.
A vertical white page with a soft shadow on its left side. In the center is a block of German text by Vija Celmins that reads: Die Farbe des Himmels … ist meine! Und doch nicht meine. Kunst zu schaffen heißt, dem nachzuspüren, was wir nicht sagen können. Along the right edge of the page is a vertical band of textured, mottled blue-green, similar to a watercolor wash.
A vertical book cover with the name Vija Celmins in white serif font against a mottled blue background. The background is covered in small black specks, resembling a starry night sky. The book is set against a white surface, casting a soft shadow to its left.
Vija Celmins
€ 58.00
VAT included. Shipping costs will be calculated at checkout
Designed by: Teo Schifferli
Edited by: Theodora Vischer, James Lingwood
June 2025, 208 Pages, 114 Photos
Hardcover
240mm x 295mm
ISBN: 978-3-7757-6030-0

HATJE CANTZ VERLAG
Mommsenstr. 27
10629 Berlin
Germany
E-Mail: contact@hatjecantz.de


According to Article 9(7) of the GPSR Regulation, no additional security information is required for books without supplements or special functions.

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Images full of magic and stillness
Vija Celmins is a master of subtle visual power. She is best known for her captivating paintings and drawings depicting galaxies, lunar surfaces, desert floors, oceans, and spider webs. Her works are not monumental; they are painted with a restrained palette and defy quick vision. But once you get involved with them, your gaze gets caught and they unfold their fascination and great beauty. This catalogue presents all 90 works exhibited at the Fondation Beyeler. Several commentaries by the artist on her works are inserted between the image pages, most of them published for the first time. Contributions by renowned authors and artists including Julian Bell, Teju Cole, Rachel Cusk, Marlene Dumas, and Glenn Ligon open up new perspectives on the artist's impressive oeuvre.

Vija Celmins (*1938, Riga) emigrated to the United States with her family in the late 1940s. She studied fine arts at the John Herron School of Art in Indiana and attended a summer course at Yale University in 1961 before earning a master's degree at UCLA. She has had solo exhibitions in numerous museums, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Menil Collection in Houston and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. In 1996, she was introduced to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 1997, she received the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship, and in 2023 the Praemium Imperiale.
Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel
June 15-September 21, 2025
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