The Henry is pleased to present a focused exhibition of works by Ken Price (U.S., 1935-2012) dating from the late 1970s to the mid 1990s from the Henry’s permanent collection. Central to the exhibition is Heat Wave, a portfolio of prints developed in conjunction with Black Sparrow Graphic Arts that illustrates a compilation of poems by prolific poet and fiction writer Charles Bukowski (U.S., born Germany 1920-1994). The portfolio was produced in 1995, a year after Bukowski’s death and is comprised of 15 prints on paper in an edition of 170. Widely considered a cult hero, in his writing Charles Bukowski depicted the depravity of American urban life, leading Time magazine to call him “the laureate of American lowlife” in the late 1980s.

The other works included in the exhibition highlight aspects of Ken Price’s figurative production, as well as his long-standing investment in ceramics, drawing, and print-making. The pieces are tightly framed, everyday representations of urban and rural scenes, rendered in a playful and colorful manner. They recall cartoons or graphic novels, appearing familiar at first, but uncanny upon closer inspection.

Known primarily as a sculptor and a printmaker, Price is also widely recognized for his abstract large-scale ceramic sculptures.