ART REVIEWS

Eight ‘Consorts’: On view at Pence is “Consorts,” a group show surveying work by eight internationally known artist teams. Central to the premise of this show is that the teams included also live together, however, none of the work on view refers in any way to the personal lives of its makers. In fact, although several strong pieces are included in this show, it’s ultimately a bit disappointing in that it fails to shed much light on the collaborative process. How and why these people creatively interact remains largely a mystery.

“Consorts” is interesting because it features works by several first-rate artists whose work hasn’t been seen in depth in Los Angeles in quite some time. Highlights include a pair of faux vintage photographs by Messrs. McDermott and McGough, two New York artists who devote themselves to resurrecting the Edwardian period. This eccentric pair dresses and in all ways lives their fantasy of the 18th Century down to the smallest detail, and though they’ve been receiving critical attention in the east for a few years, Los Angeles hasn’t yet seen a substantial exhibition of their work. On view here are two mock antique photos, one a still life, the other a portrait.

Also of note is a multi-image photographic work by acknowledged masters of the industrial landscape, German Conceptualists Bernd & Hilla Becher, two large postcard assemblages by British team Gilbert & George, three works by Kate Erickson & Mel Ziegler (they show glass jars filled with stone fragments from the quarries that built several federal buildings in Washington), and a pair of hand-painted photographs by Pierre et Giles of 17th Century saints in erotic poses.

The standout piece in the show is New York artists Leone & MacDonald’s “Ashes, Ashes, We All Fall Down,” a sculptural memento mori that consists of a large sandbox filled with damp sand that’s been embossed in Braille with the names of people who have died of AIDS. To read this text would be to destroy it--an exquisitely haunting metaphor for the fragility of life.

* Pence Gallery, 908 Colorado Ave., Santa Monica ; (213) 393-0069. To Aug . 24. Closed Sundays and Mondays.