Wolfgang Laib’s Milkstone works are a central component of the artist’s oeuvre. One of his earliest series, the works consist of pooled milk resting atop slightly indented slabs of white marble. The minute depression in the marble allows the milk to seamlessly fill the space, with the surface tension of the liquid creating the impression of a flat, singular object. The milk must be changed routinely as it spoils, its transience serving as a foil to the enduring essence historically associated with marble. This marriage of the ephemeral and the durable reflects the significance of both natural materials and concepts of temporality within Laib’s art.
In addition to the Milkstones, Laib is known for his use of beeswax, rice and in particular, pollen. Meticulously collected by solely the artist himself over the summer months in the woods surrounding his home in the south of Germany, the piles of vibrant yellow powder speak to the diligent sense of ritual that permeates Laib’s oeuvre. Similarly, the artist grinds the marble slabs used in Milkstone works by hand until the desired divot is achieved. The intense devotion that underscores Laib’s process radiates a meditative aura that is further reinforced by the densely conceptual nature of the works. The incorporation of natural substances traditionally associated with ideas of sustenance raises questions about humanity’s consumption of resources, with the artist’s handwrought working method asking viewers to consider how this consumption has been moulded by societal and technological developments.
“The Milkstones I grind by hand, pour milk into them, and involve other people in the process. For a short time, there is this concentration, an intensity. I don’t really want to call it a performance, it’s also a ritual, but then again, it’s something completely different. To me, this complexity is what makes it an important work of art and not just some decoration.”
—Wolfgang Laib
Works like the present lot exemplify the staunch resistance to conventional ways of considering temporality and the whirlwind pace of the art world that has ushered Laib to a unique position at the forefront of contemporary sculpture. In a sphere that insists upon and nearly requires constant development and reinvention, Laib’s oeuvre is defined by an exceptionally consistent visual language rooted in his deep connection to nature. It is this consistency that has earned Laib a reputation as one of the most important sculptors alive, with the artist noting “a certain persistence and depth are only possible if you stick with something.”i
His work is held in the permanent collection of numerous esteemed institutions across the world, including The Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, the Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C., Centre Pompidou, Paris and Kunstmuseum Bonn. Recent solo exhibitions of Laib’s work have been held at Musee de l’Orangerie, Paris (2024), Kunstmuseum Stuttgart (2023) and Villa e Collezione Panza, Varese (2023–2024).
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