On view at The Little House—Dries Van Noten‘s exhibition space behind its store in West Hollywood—is Misha Kahn‘s solo show “Watermelon Party.” The exhibition features Kahn’s VR-created Claymation furniture, like table lamps in a diverse range of materials, that range from auto-painted resin to ceramic. To accompany the show, Dries Van Noten and the artist have collaborated on a limited-edition printed silk bomber jacket and t-shirt. For the garments, Kahn imagined an original motif, which was then designed by Van Noten for sale.
The show’s title reflects Kahn’s view of the past year amid the pandemic. A few months into isolation at his parents’ house in Duluth, Minnesota, their neighbors invited his family over for a watermelon party. For weeks leading up to the event, they imagined what might happen at the upcoming watermelon party.
“In my scatterbrained, depressed stupor of a year, this watermelon party suggested purpose. It gave a bunch of random people, grouped together by proximity, an antidote to isolation,” said Kahn. “In a way, that’s what I’m always striving for in my work: an irreverent, all-ages serving of mystery with a big spoonful of why. In my practice, I’m constantly throwing around new materials and processes, forever looking for a binding force, something to explain the why of it all to the outside world. And maybe it’s simpler than I thought. Maybe it’s just a watermelon party two Tuesdays from now.”
