This exhibition showcases rarely seen works by the American artist, highlighting his early engagement with Minimalism and figurative sculpture. Held at David Zwirner in 2011, it marked one of the first significant presentations of his early work in the U.S. since 1972. Graham's early creations, inspired by images from television and magazines like Life, feature Plexiglas-encased environments filled with miniature wax figurines engaged in leisurely activities. The ethereal surfaces of these enclosures evoke the polished aesthetic associated with the "Finish Fetish" movement, while their interiors reflect the geography of 1960s California and modernist domestic spaces popularized by John Entenza's Case Study House Program. Throughout his career, Graham developed a focused artistic practice centered on scale and the human figure. Since the early 1970s, his works have been widely exhibited in renowned venues, including Kunstverein Hamburg and the Whitney Museum of American Art. His art is part of major museum collections globally, and he has completed numerous public commissions, such as the 1984 Olympic Gateway in Los Angeles and the Duke Ellington Memorial in Central Park, New York. Born in Mexico City in 1938, he passed away in Santa Monica, California, in 2008.
