Molly Larkey
Molly Larkey (born December 31, 1971) is an American multi-disciplinary artist based in Los Angeles. Her work includes sculpture, painting, and drawing, often using abstract shapes to explore social and political ideas. Larkey's work has been featured in exhibitions at MoMA PS1, the SculptureCenter, and The Saatchi Gallery.
Molly Larkey
- Born
- 1971 · Los Angeles.
- Nationality
- United States
- Occupation
- artist · painter · sculptor
- Education
- Rutgers University · Columbia University
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Molly Larkey (born December 31, 1971) is an American multi-disciplinary artist based in Los Angeles. Her work includes sculpture, painting, and drawing, often using abstract shapes to explore social and political ideas. Larkey's work has been featured in exhibitions at MoMA PS1, the SculptureCenter, and The Saatchi Gallery.
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Molly Larkey (born 1971) is an artist, painter and sculptor, of American nationality. The artist was born in Los Angeles. Molly Larkey was educated at Columbia University and Rutgers University.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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Early life and education
Early life and education
She is also a co-founder of the People's Pottery Project, a non-profit studio in Los Angeles that supports formerly incarcerated individuals through the arts.
Larkey was born in Los Angeles. Her parents are the singer Carole King and the bass player Charles Larkey. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University and her Master of Fine Arts from Rutgers University.
Work and style
Work and style
Larkey's art often focuses on how we use language and symbols. In her early career, she was known for detailed drawings on paper, but after moving to Los Angeles, she began creating "sculptural paintings" large, three-dimensional works made from steel, linen, and hand-mixed paint. Critics have described her aesthetic as a combination of industrial materials and organic shapes. In her series The More Things Change, Larkey used hand-shaped steel to create forms that diverge from the traditional constraints of minimalist sculpture.
Selected exhibitions
Selected exhibitions
• 2000 • Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey • 2001 • An Exhibition of Works by Contemporary Women Artists, Bobbie Greenfield Gallery, Santa Monica • 2004 • Black Milk, Marvelli Gallery, New York • 2005 • LineAge, The Drawing Center, New York • Off My Biscuit, Destroy Your District!, Samson Projects, Boston • 2007 • Project Room, PS1 Contemporary Arts Center, Long Island City • M*A*S*H, Smith-Stewart, New York • I Died For Beauty, Newman Popiashvilli Gallery, New York • Da Damage, Jack the Pelican Presents, Brooklyn
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reference work
- “Molly Larkey”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
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- Wikidata, structured authority record Q6896614: Molly Larkey
General reference · Wikidata
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Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Molly Larkey National Gallery of Art. www.nga.gov.
- 2.Molly Larkey. Santa Fe Art Institute.
- 3.Villarreal, Ignacio. The First Art Newspaper on the Net. Artdaily.org.
- 4.O'Leary, Erin. Slow View: Molly Larkey. Carla. 2015-08-09.
- 5.SUNDAY L.E.S. - forum. www.sundaynyc.com.
- 6.Molly Larkey. franconia.org.
- 7.Johnson, Ken. Art in-Review; 'black milk' – 'theories of suicide'. The New York Times. July 16, 2004.
- 8.Ollman, Leah. Review: Molly Larkey's sculpture: A heavy metal workout for the eyes. Los Angeles Times. 2018-04-28.
- 9.MoMA PS1. www.ps1.org.
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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Social practice and writing
In 2019, Larkey co-founded People's Pottery Project alongside Ilka Perkins and Domonique Perkins. It is a nonprofit ceramics studio offering job training and creative space for formerly incarcerated women, trans, and non-binary individuals. Larkey has published essays in Los Angeles Review of Books, Contemporary Art Review Los Angeles (CARLA), and Haunt Journal of Art.