The Works on View
In this exhibition, Kelly Akashi presents a new sculptural installation, a steel relief, works on
paper, and an outdoor-screen animation across the Whitney’s fifth-floor terrace and adjacent
spaces. These works are shaped in part by her experience in the aftermath of the Eaton Fire in
January 2025.
Anchoring the presentation is Monument (Altadena) (2026), a chimney and pathway installation
that takes shape as both reconstruction and memorial. After Akashi’s home and studio burned in
the fire, the chimney was the only structure left standing. For the Hyundai Terrace Commission,
the artist has worked with a mason to rebuild it piece by piece, alongside a reconstruction of her
home’s pathway in cast glass brick. Installed on the terrace, the work transforms the Whitney
Museum’s outdoor gallery into a site of witness and reflection on survival, rupture, and what
remains.
Also on the terrace, Inheritance (Distressed) (2026) is installed on the bulkhead south of Monument (Altadena). The work draws from a personal archive, Akashi’s grandmother’s doilies,
which the artist rescued from a family garage sale and later lost in the same fire.
Inside the museum, Imprints (2026) comprises five framed works on paper. On the terrace’s outdoor screen, Remnants (Constellations) (2026) extends the presentation into moving image.