One night in 1923, notoriously hotheaded Surrealist Andre Breton hit the much smaller, less notorious Pierre de Massot with his cane. He did so because de Massot had, in his view, insulted the great Pablo Picasso. Artist Shana Lutker's study of this altercation, and other physical fights among Surrealists, loosely informed “The Bearded Gas,” her show at Susanne Vielmetter Projects. But you don't need to know that to feel the full effect of Lutker's installation. It's like a high-art version of Alice's Wonderland: Two stages, one on the floor, one suspended upside down from the ceiling, are in the first gallery. Between those stages is a mirror. In front of the mirror, a chrome globe and its pedestal lean, as if about to fall, and a ladder hovers above a set of white steps. In the second gallery, metal drapes hang from a slightly bowed pole, and wide rope winds along the wall. 6006 Washington Blvd.; through May 25. (310) 837-2117, vielmetter.com.

Tuesdays-Saturdays. Starts: April 20. Continues through May 25, 2013

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