Friedrich Kunath is a contemporary German artist known for his paintings and sculpture dealing with music, loss, fear, and other universal themes. Kunath collages together art history, writing, consumer culture, and other elements to produce complex works. “I feel that it’s the very engine of my work, this longing for a place that doesn’t exist—it’s an empty promise,” he has said. “LA is an empty promise—I am fully aware of it—but I also love it. I love the stupidity, and I love the substance and the narratives that the city provides.” Born in 1974 in Chemnitz, East Germany, he spent his teenage years in West Berlin and later traveled across America before attending the Peter Mertes...