Hi all,
This is the first of a (probably) monthly post of artists and exhibitions I like. There's a lot out there, and some targeted due diligence can go a long way in finding work you're excited about.
My hope is that you can scroll through this non-exhaustive list in thirty seconds or less, finding some artworks you like and some you don't, while being exposed to something unfamiliar as well as a tad about how the art market works. I'm not going to explore the canons of art nor how the artworks can be historically placed. My interest is to expose you to a large quantity of (imho) high quality work.
See below, and let me know what you think.
Yours,
Gabe
Note: Will you be at Frieze New York, the art fair, this upcoming week? Let me know, I'll be there Thursday afternoon!
Exhibitions
Big deal exhibition opening in New York next week by the most talented and curious Dominique Fung. Her paintings feature a distinct, well-developed style (especially given her age--b.'87), while the content is timely and intimately entangled with history. She's young and the institutional acceptance is coming very soon--a Jeffrey Deitch soloshow is a big deal, and it's likely important museum acquisitions (likely to the ICA Boston, Hammer, MCA, or Whitney?) will occur in the wake of it. We should also keep an eye out for a New York-based gallery to nab her for regional representation.
Gallery: Jeffrey Deitch, Nicodim Gallery
(Everyone say hi to Ben Lee on the right)
I was lucky to visit this exhibition by the Boyle Family last month and was head over heels for the work. The show is named Nothing is more radical than the facts and is a series of recreations of randomly selected portions of earth. That's right, randomly selected by throwing a dart at a map to reduce the artists' potential subjectivity. The work was made in the late 20th century by a British family: a mother, father, and their two kids. They're hilarious, sobering, introspective, and splendid to spend time with in person.
Gallery: Luhring Augustine
I hope to make it Kristy Cavaltro’s Brooklyn solo exhibition next week after Frieze. The sculptures are soldered stained glass, organizationally resembling systems of sorts, vaguely anthropomorphic—they might even have something to contribute to the discourse of abstraction. It’ll be exciting to see how the work develops, I think she’s onto something…
Gallery: Ramiken
Artists
Those who know my taste well know that I am very interested in conceptual art, particularly that which is German or emerged in the 1990s and later. Thomas Struth's photographs feel like modern old masters--technically expert, deeply institutional, and politically charged. He's a part of a German school of photographers with similarly grandiose (physically and conceptually) work. Aesthetically, he's like the anti-Tillmans (in a complementary way). I could talk for awhile about these most recent photographs...first from NASA's JPL, followed by a university chemistry lab.
Gallery: Marian Goodman
It wasn't until a few weeks ago that I became aware of Monir Farmanfarmaian's work while gallery hopping with a friend in Tribeca. A close friend's influence has been inspiring me to learn more about art adjacent to and involved with Islam, and Monir built a bridge with American abstraction at an aesthetically influential and politically contentious time. She was included in the Venice Biennale (Iranian Pavilion) in 1958 and has a solo exhibition at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta slated for 2022, an institution I've found recently to be gaining credibility. Checkout this magnificent installation measuring 14ft/4.25m on the long end, followed by a transcendent install from her survey show at the Guggenheim Museum.
Gallery: James Cohan
I've been following Ginny Casey's work for three years now, and her development as a painter and artist has been truly exceptional. Conceptually, the work has grown by leaps and bounds while she's honed her style. Her content is anthropomorphic, affective, playful, and deeply personal. Her solo show recently closed and I unfortunately missed it. See below two recent paintings.
Gallery: Half Gallery
Thanks for looking!
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