Tag: fine art

Irving Penn at Pace Gallery

Irving Penn coined the term ‘Photographism’ to describe his style, a synthesis of graphic design and fine art, but the impact of his images goes beyond words.  Isolated against a white background that emphasizes strong tonal contrast and boldly outlined form, this 1971 photograph at Pace Gallery lends these two buds a hyperreality and heightened beauty.  (On view in Chelsea through Feb 13th).


Irving Penn, Imperial Pink Bud (top), Imperial Gold Bud (bottom), New York, pigment print mounted to board, 16 7/8 x 21 ¾ inches (image, paper and mount), 1971.

Raul de Lara at Ethan Cohan Fine Art

A cactus featuring a grinning mask greets visitors to Raul de Lara’s New York solo show debut at Chelsea’s Ethan Cohan Fine Art, but beneath the apparent levity are the hard realities of the artist’s migrant experience.  Though he employs humor to lift his audiences’ spirits, de Lara reveals the frustration and anxiety of life as DACA recipient in his autobiographical sculptures.  Surprising juxtapositions of forms, like this school desk studded with dangerous cactus needles, energize the work and, in this case, recall how the artist was hit on the hand by nuns at school who punished him for being left-handed.  De Lara gets the last laugh here by lodging a piece of gum under the desk, a mini act of rebellion.  (On view in Chelsea through Oct 17th by appointment.  Masks and social distancing are required.)


Raul de Lara, For Being Left-Handed, 2020, Pine, Chiclets Gum, Acrylic, Brass, Steel, Particle Board, 27 x 12 x 13 in.

Madeline Donahue at Steven Harvey Fine Art Projects

A mother’s body becomes a playground for her baby, whose sense of curiosity and play ignores boundaries in Madeline Donahue’s humorous paintings at Steven Harvey Fine Art Projects.  Shifts in scale turn a mom into a giant as baby uses her hair like climbing rope; in other pieces, Donahue creates curving or angular geometric compositions from the antics of her exploring offspring.  Through it all, the paintings charm with their sense of humor, patience and stoicism.  (On view on the Lower East Side through Oct 5th).

Madeline Donahue, Untitled, oil on canvas, 20 x 16 inches, 2019.

Tiffany Chung at Tyler Rollins Fine Art

Tiffany Chung’s meticulous maps plot migration crises around the world, turning conflict into art that informs. In this detail from an eleven-foot long embroidered world map at Tyler Rollins Fine Art, circles stand in for groups of internally displaced people offering a glimpse into the magnitude of global upheaval. (On view through Oct 21st in Chelsea).

Tiffany Chung, (detail of) IDMC: numbers of worldwide conflicts and disaster IDPs by end of 2016, embroidery on fabric, 55 x 137 ¾ inches, 2017.

Lao Tongli in ‘Transitions’ at Chambers Fine Art

Lao Tongli’s organic forms stand out against a black background, suggesting that they populate some dark, interior space despite their color. Though they look like plant forms or stylized tree branches, their resemblance to blood vessels is appropriate, having been inspired by Tongli’s fathers’ long struggle with heart disease. (On view at Chambers Fine Art in Chelsea through Sept 2nd).

Lao Tongli, (detail of) Horizon, Positive Negative Zero Zero 03, ink and minerals on silk, 54 ¼ x 54 ½ x ½ inches, 2017.