Best-known for his vacuum-formed plastic works, whose curving surfaces extend from the wall in stunning, vibrant hues, Craig Kauffman (1932–2010) was one of the most significant figures to emerge from the fertile art scene in 1950s and 1960s Los Angeles. For nearly six decades, he created painterly and sculptural objects that continually experimented with form, color, material and space. Deeply engaged with art history and twentieth-century modernism, Kauffman’s work reflected artistic currents of his time, including painterly abstraction, minimalism and post-minimalism, but retained a formal thrust and an aesthetic energy all its own. Sprüth Magers has represented the artist’s estate since 2016.
Exhibition graphic: Si Six Scies Studios
The Inoperative Community: Exhibition X Practice, UCI 1965–2025
Group Exhibition
University Art Gallery, University of California, Irvine
Through December 13, 2025
This exhibition at UC Irvine’s University Art Galleries (UCI UAG) provides an unprecedented look at the gallery’s evolving curatorial and artistic legacy from 1965 to the present, highlighting its significant role in shaping the artistic and academic communities at UCI and beyond. The exhibition takes its title from Jean-Luc Nancy’s famed “Inoperative Community” essay, in which a non-hegemonic, fluid model of community is presented. In this context, the UAG’s history is understood not as a linear narrative, but as an evolving, collective moment where diverse voices and practices converge and shift over time.
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