The Chevaliers, 2021

Urethane paint on stainless steel
© Carol Bove; courtesy the artist and David Zwirner
Photo by Maris Hutchinson.

Raised in Berkeley, Carol Bove first gained public attention in the early 2000s with a body of work that explored her interest in the social, cultural, and political contexts of the 1960s and 1970s. By the mid-2010s, however, Bove was exploring industrial materials and began creating large, often outdoor pieces that she refers to as “collage sculptures.” To create these works, Bove combines different types of steel. First, she bends six-inch square tubing with a custom-made hydraulic press—subjecting the metal to several tons of force—before pulling it into configuration with a chain-hoist system. Other tools are used to dent and crush the steel. Once her compositions are finalized, Bove paints them in a matte finish. Her colors often reference outdated print technologies, ideas of digital distortion, and the work of other artists. Other colors allude to the corporeal: the pink she has used in several works—The Chevaliers included—emphasizes their limblike contortions.