James Casebere and Jose Dávila, “The Poetic Dimension”

by Jody Zellen

Sean Kelly, Los Angeles, California

Continuing through November 1, 2025

Jose Dávila, “Joint Effort,” 2024, concrete, boulder, and ratchet strap, 92 13/16 x 26 1/2 x 22 5/8”. All images courtesy of Sean Kelly, Los Angeles.

“The Poetic Dimension” pairs photographer James Casebere with sculptor Jose Dávila, linking them together because of their shared interests in Mexican modernist architect Luis Barragán. Barragán (1902-1988) was a revered figure in architecture worldwide. His buildings, many of which are residential, are filled with light and color. He melded the traditional aesthetics of Mexico with modernist principles to create spaces that were about form, structure and the relationship between inside and out. Both Casebere and Dávila are themselves modernists whose formal practices delve into the relationships between planes of color and the spaces created between objects — both real and constructed. Seeing their works presented together under the umbrella of Barragán's architecture makes for a wonderful trio of interrelationships.

Jose Dávila, “Fundamental Concern,” 2025, concrete and bolder, 75 9/16 x 47 1/4 x 26 7/8”.

Dávila trained as an architect but later turned to sculpture and installation. Using a wide range of materials, he fashions objects that are simultaneously beautiful and uncanny. In the gallery are four recent sculptures that investigate structural equilibrium and restraint. “Joint Effort” (2024) juxtaposes two pale terra-cotta cuboids. One serves as a base for a rounded boulder and the other rests on top of the stone. The entire work is encircled and held together by a white canvas strap and metal ratchet. The work is sturdy, yet precarious.

“Fundamental Concern” (2025) is equally playful and solemn. Four light blue concrete rectangles are balanced on top of each other, one placed at ninety degrees to the other three. The top two blocks are perched at an angle that bites down on a small cream-colored rock resembling an outstretched tongue. “Acapulco Chair Stack” (2022) combines a collection of Acapulco chairs that have been stripped of their netting so all that remains are the blue-green frames. These metal lines are intertwined to support three stones that both tumble through and anchor the interior space.

James Casebere, “Vestibule,” 2016, framed archival pigment print mount to Dibond paper, 62 x 44 3/8”.

On the walls surrounding Dávila's floor-bound sculptures are Casebere's color photographs. Casebere is best known for constructing and then photographing table-top models drawn from architectural and cinematic sources. The photographs here depict sculptural spaces that have been carefully lit to maximize color and shadow. Whether interior or exterior spaces, these constructions are created with exacting detail, though often designed to be viewed from the specific vantage point at which he places the camera. In “The Poetic Dimension” Casebere uses Barragán's architecture as the point of departure. He does not recreate Barragán's spaces verbatim, but rather captures the formal essence of receding corridors and the shapes of light cast across walls and floors to emphasize transcendence.

“Vestibule” (2016) is a seemingly impossible space, with irregularly shaped walls that converge toward the back of the image. On the right, a light pink wall intersects with those that are off white, all in stark contrast to a dark floor. A yellow square and rectangle stand out from the white walls as random shapes that appear to be illuminated by a source beyond the picture plane. It feels evocative and welcoming, but at the same time the space is disorienting.

James Casebere, “Courtyard with Orange Wall,” 2017, framed archival pigment print mount to Dibond paper, 64 3/8 x 44 3/8”.

An internet search reveals an image of Barragán's actual studio that features a spacious room with a couch and table. The emphasis is on warmth, as the room is flooded with yellow light. In Casebere's rendition, “Empty Studio” (2017), the furniture is gone. The ceiling has yellow beams and the floor is made of simple wooden panels that recede toward the back wall. An evocative geometric shape created by light flooding through the window is positioned near the middle of the composition, hugging the back wall and floor. Other photographs depict exteriors: “Courtyard with Orange Wall” and “El Eco Courtyard” (both 2017) reduce Barragán's architecture to geometric shapes and flat planes of color. The blue sky in relation to a yellow column and light brown facade becomes a geometric abstraction, as do the green and orange shapes in “Courtyard with Orange Wall.”

While Casebere's and Dávila's works resonate individually, shown together they become a distinctive and thoughtful homage to Barragán. The exhibition creates a conversation not only about how to interpret the built environment, but how it can be used to inspire abstract art.

Jody Zellen is a LA based writer and artist who creates interactive installations, mobile apps, net art, animations, drawings, paintings, photographs, public art, and artist’s books. Zellen received a BA from Wesleyan University (1983), a MFA from CalArts (1989) and a MPS from NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program (2009). She has exhibited nationally and internationally since 1989. For more information please visit www.jodyzellen.com.