Amir Zaki
Coastline Cliffside #41, 2012
Framed Ultrachrome Archival Pigment Photograph with UV Coating
51 x 60 inches

The two new series of black and white photographs by Amir Zaki that go on view starting this weekend at ACME depict the precarious balance of subtlety and drama that is characteristic of the southern California coast. Zaki’s large portraits of trees recall Chinese landscape paintings, their negative space a powerful counterpoint to the extreme detail rendered in the leaves and bark of these oddly-shaped subjects. His series of coastal cliff sides portray the scenery we normally turn away from when we set up our beach chairs along the shoreline to gaze out at the sea. An improbable jumble of monumental retaining walls, tumble-down wooden staircases, and drainpipes, the manmade elements are overtaken in places by native vines and shrubs, wildflowers and weeds. In both series, nature and culture shake hands, tentatively agreeing to adjust to each other’s needs and to the effects of entropy at will. ACME is located at 6150 Wilshire Boulevard. There will be a reception for the artist on March 23 from 6 to 8pm, and the exhibition will be on view through April 27.