Lars van Dooren: with psychic unmaking
September 9 – October 4, 2026
Organized by Leonora Loeb
Opening reception and raffle: Wednesday, September 9th from 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Participation in the raffle requires in-person attendance.
Press Release
UNDERDONK is pleased to present with psychic unmaking, a solo presentation of drawings and sculpture by Lars van Dooren organized by Leonora Loeb.
Please join us for a special opening reception on Wednesday, September 9th from 5:30 - 8:00 pm, during which the work will be sold through a raffle and pay- what-you-wish pricing. Participation in the raffle requires in-person attendance.
Lars van Dooren makes drawings and sculptures where elements of religious imagery, invented symbols, graphic marks, and studio scraps are assembled over time and exist somewhere between organic growth and manufactured debris.
Equally at home in spaces across a spectrum of American culture and architecture, these works could shelter in the food court of an abandoned mall, be lost to the rooms of a defunct California cult, or hang on the wall of a home.
At the opening, each piece will be sold through a raffle and pay-what-you-wish pricing structure, though the work will remain on view for the entirety of the exhibition. This sales structure creates a personal exchange between artist and buyer, while questioning the usual ways art is valued, circulated, and collected, and aims to remove the work from the too-common cycle of creation>exhibition>storage.
"This is the fourth iteration of exhibiting my work with a Pay What You Wish component.
These projects are grounded in a belief that my work should be accessible and move through the world in novel ways. Exhibiting is a fundamental step.
Artists generally understand that few of us make a living from our studio work. This is not a unique insight. Through some combination of exhibiting, networking, luck,
visibility, personality, media presence, work ethic, institutional support, identity, geography, education, as well as other ephemeral and concrete qualities, some of us sometimes sell some number of things. As a consequence of the economic system we are subject to, art objects are often viewed (and collected) as luxury goods.
I have a full-time job which is a complete waste of my time. While having this job has not discouraged me from making things, it has afforded me the opportunity to play with the edges of this system of production, exhibition, and distribution. I can find new paths for how my work might move through the world because of my job.
I take my work seriously but I’m not terribly precious about it. It’s cathartic placing its monetary value in the hands of someone on the receiving end. It’s difficult, and potentially absurd, to quantify the time and value of all the head-to-hand decisions I’ve expressed in the form of drawings and sculptures. So, why not hand that decision over to a potential stranger!
If you end up having your number drawn tonight and you’re faced with telling me how much you’d like to pay for my work, don’t stress. Maybe time and your relationship with the thing I've made will reveal you paid too little, too much, or just the right amount? It might be awkward for you, but I believe it's an interesting exchange and rewarding community experiment. So give yourself over to it. At best, you’ll remember this evening as a witness or a participant. At worst, you forgot your wallet."
-Lars van Dooren
Lars van Dooren was born in the port city of Tacoma, Washington. He lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. He has exhibited at various places in New York City and elsewhere.
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