Though this huge polished aluminum sculpture by iconic minimalist-turned-maker of-exuberant-forms Frank Stella looks like a giant Christmas tree ornament, at over 18’ tall it’s too big even for the Rockefeller tree. Titled ‘Puffed Star II,’ it continues Stella’s interest in forms that take over the space they’re in. (At Marianne Boesky Gallery’s Chelsea space through Dec 20th.)
Frank Stella, Puffed Star II, polished aluminum, 224 ½ x 224 ½ inches, 2014.
Late New York painter Albert York’s paintings of landscapes, dogs, cows and flowers may look conventional, but they elicit strong praise from art world cognoscenti for their dreamy quality and conversation with the history of painting landscape and portraiture. (At Chelsea’s Matthew Marks Gallery through Dec 20th).
Albert York, Cow, oil on board, 9 x 10 ¼ inches, c. 1972.
What does your bookcase say about you? London-based artist Dylan Stone memorializes his film producer parents’ collection of books, LPs and video-cassettes in a huge painting at Chelsea’s Josee Bienvenu Gallery (seen here in detail). So much pre-digital media rendered in the ageless media of watercolor makes a poignant comment on longevity. (Through Dec 13th.)
Dylan Stone, detail from Barbara and David Stone’s Videos, LPs and Books, watercolor on paper, 110 x 150 inches, 2014.
George Condo’s Picassoid jumbling of classic Condo facial features on the left and a sketchy blond Ab Exp muse on the right make an arresting couple at the entrance to Skarstedt’s Chelsea gallery. They’re also an amusing counterpart to the current Picasso show down the block at Gagosian Gallery. (In Chelsea through Dec 20th)
George Condo, Double Heads on Blue and Silver, acrylic, charcoal, pastel on linen, 78 x 110 inches, 2014.
By dividing Ramiken Crucible’s small Lower East Side space into narrow compartments littered with dingy Pepsi cans and wall mounted urethane furniture casts, LA artist Kaari Upson creates a claustrophobic habitat that’s grungy while also strangely tidy. A puffy urethane door and doorstop at the entrance recall the harmless oddness of Claes Oldenburg sculpture. (At Ramiken Crucible through Dec 14th).
Kaari Upson, Untitled, aluminum, 200 aluminum cans, 2014 (foreground). Kaari Upson, Door Stop, urethane, pigment and cement, 2014 (background).
