How to Structure…

How to Structure Series Hierarchies.

A mature artistic practice is not defined by the number of works produced, but by the hierarchy established between them. Series are not interchangeable units; they carry different weights, functions, and degrees of visibility. Without hierarchy, a practice fragments. With it, the work becomes legible over time.

A clear hierarchy begins by identifying a core body of work. This is the series that carries the primary investigation — the language that defines the artist’s position. It is not necessarily the most decorative or immediately accessible work, but the one that sustains the greatest conceptual and material density. This series leads the practice and conditions the reading of everything else.

Secondary series extend, echo, or soften the central inquiry without competing with it. They operate as satellites rather than alternatives. Their role is to deepen understanding, offer variation, or introduce breath, while remaining anchored to the same structural concerns.

Series that fall outside this relationship require a different treatment. Some function as commercial or architectural work, others as transitional phases or closed chapters. Not all bodies of work need equal exposure. Strategic withholding is often what preserves coherence.

Curators and collectors read hierarchy intuitively. They look for a practice that knows what leads, what follows, and what remains peripheral. When this structure is clear, the work does not need explanation. The relationships between series speak for themselves.

Hierarchy is not about limiting production. It is about governing visibility. A practice gains authority when its parts are not presented as equal, but as intentionally related.