Koplin Del Rio

February 2013

Wunderkammer: Miniatures and Curiosities
Exhibition Dates: February 23 – April 6, 2013
Artist Reception: Saturday, February 23, 5:00 - 7:00 pm
Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Friday: 10:00 am - 5:30 pm; Saturday: 11:00 am - 5:30 pm
Public Contact: 310-836-9055

Koplin Del Rio is pleased to announce an upcoming group exhibition, Wunderkammer: Miniatures and Curiosities.

The show title is derived from the German Wunder (Wonder) and Kammer (Room). Wunderkammer was used to describe the odd and eclectic collections of art, objects of natural history, and relics of antiquity displayed by aristocratic families beginning in 16th century Europe. The public’s interest in these collections as well as the popularity of their unique method of display paved the way for the well known European museums and galleries of today. These private collections housed in expansive dwellings of the rich and elite, were curated to inspire awe in visitors and to express the owner’s personal interests, including miniaturist masterpieces, preserved specimens of flora and fauna, anatomical deformities, dinosaur bones and fossils, automatons and objects pillaged from voyages to the New World.

The works were often displayed salon-style, floor to ceiling or occasionally as smaller “cabinets of curiosity”. The collections functioned as a conversation piece and status symbol, reflecting the enlightenment of the host and the increasing fascination of society with art, science and the natural world as Europe emerged from the depths of the Middle Ages.

Koplin Del Rio’s Wunderkammer was curated with these historic collections in mind. Forty participating artists from a variety of disciplines completed works ranging from miniaturist paintings, drawings and photographs to sculpture and assemblage. Among the Included are: cast bronze primate studies by Peter Zokosky; a miniaturist portrait of Lady Hamiltion (with objects from Lord Hamilton’s extensive Wunderkammer collection) by Wes Christensen; two sculptures by Sarah Perry incorporating millipede husks and an antique book on insect metamorphosis; small dreamscapes by Josh Dorman using antique maps collaged with hand painting and drawing; and Robbie Conal’s frenetic light sculpture skull fabricated from cast gummy worms to name a few.

KDR’s Wunderkammer is a celebration of the weird, the wonderful and the diminutive.

Participating Artists:

Sandow Birk &
Elyse Pignolet
Fred Birchman
Shay Bredimus
Darlene Campbell
Wes Christensen
Robbie Conal
Melissa Cooke
Marianela de la Hoz
Einar & Jamex de la Torre
Josh Dorman
Cynthia Evans
Moira Hahn
Kenny Harris
F. Scott Hess
Laurie Hogin
Kathryn Jacobi
Klein Prints
Ira Korman
Ryan Kuhlman
Joshua Levine
Phillip Levine
Tim Lowly &
Rachael McHan
Chantal Menard 
Norman Lundin
Barrie Mottishaw
Michelle Muldrow
Judy Nimtz
Orville Stoeber
Sarah Perry
Robert Pruitt
Cynthia Sitton
Aaron Smith
Fred Stonehouse
Ruprecht von Kaufmann
Stacy Lynn Waddell
Suné Woods
Yuriko Yamaguchi
Peter Zokosky

For further information or photos, please contact Ronald De Angelis at (310) 836-9055.