Semiotext(e): Desert Islands

Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, East 7th Street 1717, 90021, Los Angeles

4. April 2026 – 23. August 2026

Initially known for its introduction of French theory to American readers, Semiotext(e) has been one of America's most influential independent presses since its inception five decades ago. With works of theory, fiction, madness, economics, satire, sexuality, science fiction, activism, and confession, Semiotext(e)'s highly curated list of publications has famously melded high and low forms of cultural expression into a nuanced and polemical vision of the present. On view in the Annex Gallery, Desert Islands is a visual archipelago of printed writers' quotes pulled from Semiotext(e)'s catalogue. Dream Machine (2026) is a sculpture/collage by Hedi El Kholti in homage to Brion Gysin's original Dreamachine created in the 1960s and the 1978 Nova Convention organized by John Giorno and Sylvère Lotringer where artists, writers, and theorists converged to celebrate the work of William S. Burroughs.