Mario Merz, Canti errabondi I, acrylic and oil on canvas with tree branch and beeswax, 1983.
The sheer size of ‘Wandering Songs I (Canti errabondi I)’ from 1983 makes it a standout in ‘Mario Merz: Major Works from the 1980s’ at Sperone Westwater Gallery on the Lower East Side. The Arte Povera artist’s natural materials abound in an oil painting of leaves and pine cones on a 25’ long canvas, accompanied by a block of beeswax formed around a tree branch. The contrast between nature depicted (the painting), sampled (the branch) and made (wax made by bees) gives the piece its energy. (through Dec 22nd).
Merrily Kerr is an art critic and writer based in New York. For more than 20 years, Merrily has published in international art magazines including Time Out New York, Art on Paper, Flash Art, Art Asia Pacific, Art Review, and Tema Celeste in addition to writing catalogue essays and guest lecturing. Merrily teaches art appreciation at Marymount Manhattan College and has taught for Cooper Union Continuing Education.
For more than a decade Merrily has crafted personalized tours of cultural discovery in New York's galleries and museums for individuals and groups, including corporate tours, collectors, artists, advertising agencies, and student groups from Texas Woman's University, Parsons School of Design, Chicago's Moody Institute, Cooper Union Continuing Education, Hunter College Continuing Education and other institutions. Merrily's tours have been featured in The New York Times, Conde Nast Traveler, Sydney Morning Herald and Philadelphia Magazine.
Merrily is licensed by New York City's Department of Consumer Affairs as a tour guide and is a member of the International Association of Art Critics (AICA USA)
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