Erik Frydenborg                       

Aquarius Cusp, 2017
Coated polystyrene, wood, paint, acrylic convex safety mirrors.
Exhibition location: Astronomical Museum
Photo credits: Eden Batki, Ernest Gibson

Erik Frydenborg's Aquarius Cusp augments the facade of the Astronomical Museum with a pair of oracular statues, flanking the building's doors in the manner of classical sentinels. Recalling both the austerity of votive guardians from ancient Delphi and the ambiguous hybridity of Max Ernst's composite bronzes, Frydenborg's sculptures suggest mythic origins while resisting direct interpretation. At the same time, they riff on vernacular tropes of inelegant 'plop art' common to sculpture in public settings.

Behind the sculptures, a line of convex safety mirrors correspond with an existing mirror centered over the museum's entrance. Loosely evocative of astral bodies in array, these mirrors also serve as a kind of short-range surveillance monitors. Contrasting the surrounding telescopes' skyward gaze, these ocular features stare back at visitors as they move through the building's terrestrial threshold.

Erik Frydenborg received his BFA from the Maryland Institute, College of Art, and his MFA from the University of Southern California. His work has been reviewed in Artforum, Flash Art, and the Los Angeles Times, among other publications. Frydenborg’s work recently appeared in the solo exhibitions An Erik Frydenborg Omnibus at The Pit II in Glendale and Nebula Winners at Andrew Rafacz, Chicago, as well as in Brian Kokoska’s Trauma Sauna at ASHES/ASHES, Los Angeles. Frydenborg was also included in recent group exhibitions at Regina Rex and Team Gallery, New York, Rainbow In Spanish and M+B, Los Angeles, Albert Baronian, Brussels, and Shanaynay, Paris. In September 2017, his work will appear in a solo exhibition at The Pit. Frydenborg lives and works in Los Angeles.