Max Hertz
b. 1996
Venice, California 90291
Artist Statement
My interest in making—through building, assembly, and material—is rooted in a shared memory of learning through play. I think about the act of play as a formative experience, shaping our earliest understandings of space, object, and body. While I’m fascinated by the way we learn as children, I’m also engaged with the fact that this process changes at some point. In the interest of pushing back on that eventual shift, my work looks to tap into the visual language and functions of play objects like blocks, jungle gyms, and puzzles. My practice and the development of a form language aim to mimic and, in a way, return to that state of learning, while also prolonging the collective memory of play.
Education
- Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
BFA, Sculpture, 2015–2019 - Cross-registered Brown University courses in Cognitive Science, Linguistics, Psychology, and Geology (2017–2019)
Exhibitions
- Puentes – group – April 2025, Artbug Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
- Max Hertz & Stacy Fong – two person – March 2025, The Feel, Los Angeles, CA
- Mutual Aid Auction – group, benefit – January 2025, Los Angeles Design Weekend & Object Permanence (Online)
- The Auction – group – September 2024, Raw Senses, Zurich, Switzerland
- 28 Lights – group – July 2024, The Hunt Vintage, Los Angeles, CA
- Vessel Variety Show – group – December 2023, The Feel, Los Angeles, CA
- Incognito 2023 – group, benefit – December 2023, Hauser & Wirth, Los Angeles, CA
- Better Structures – solo – September 2022, Spy Projects, Los Angeles, CA
- Fitting Forms – solo – June 2022, Craig Krull Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
- American Architecture – group – March 2022, Spy Projects, Los Angeles, CA
- A Kaleidoscope of Great Works by Alumni Artists – group – April 2022, Chuck Arnoldi Studio, Los Angeles, CA
- Disassembly Line – group – November 2021, Molly Barnes & Spy Projects, Los Angeles, CA
- Glance Back, Forge Forward – group – September 2021, Sam Francis Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
- Hello World – group – June 2021, Spy Projects, Los Angeles, CA
- New Contemporaries – group – June 2019, RISD Museum, Providence, RI
- Senior Invitational Exhibition – group – May 2019, Woods-Gerry Gallery, Providence, RI
- Welcome to My Show – group – April 2019, Woods-Gerry Gallery, Providence, RI
- ___scapes – group – January 2019, RISD Museum, Providence, RI
- Center-Mid – two person – July 2018, Infinity on West Adams, Los Angeles, CA
- RISD Sculpture Triennial – group – January 2018, Woods-Gerry Gallery, Providence, RI
- Max Hertz at WNDO – solo – August 2017, Jim Budman Studio, Los Angeles, CA
- Poles and Holes – group – February 2017, Exposé Gallery, Providence, RI