John Wilson, ‘Witnessing Humanity’ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

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At eight feet tall, John Wilson’s bronze bust of Martin Luther King, Jr. was intended to be “a Black image you could not ignore.” Much smaller, but still arresting, Wilson’s sculpture of King with an intensely focused gaze (a model for the final piece installed in Martin Luther King Jr. Park in Buffalo) dominates the first gallery of the artist’s powerful Metropolitan Museum of Art retrospective.  Intimate charcoal drawings of the love between fathers and children, stylized portrayals of working people in Mexico and Paris, pictured incidents of racially motivated violence and art made in wartime show Wilson countering prevalent negative images of African Americans with depictions grounded in real-life that demonstrate beauty and respect for Black subjects. (On view on the Upper East Side at the Met Museum through Feb 8th, 2026).

Large bronze bust of Martin Luther King Jr's head.
John Wilson, Maquette for Martin Luther King, Jr. (Buffalo, New York), modeled 1982, cast 2021, bronze.

Red Grooms, Mimi Gross and The Ruckus Construction Company, ‘Dame of the Narrows’ at Brooklyn Museum

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‘Ruckus Manhattan,’ a legendary sculptural rendition of New York City’s iconic sites created in 1975 by Red Grooms, Mimi Gross and collaborators known as the Ruckus Construction Co., is so huge that it is only occasionally shown.  Now, the artists’ version of the Staten Island Ferry has surfaced in the Brooklyn Museum’s main, ground floor gallery along with the group’s recreation of a Times Square adult bookstore and a small selection of supporting artwork by other artists reflecting on the city.  Surrounded on the four walls of the museum’s large exhibition space by a mural of the harbor, a visit to ‘Dame of the Narrows’ is the next best thing to actually getting out on the water.  (On view at the Brooklyn Museum through Nov 2nd).

sculpture of a ferry and a pier in NY harbor in a large exhibition gallery
Red Grooms, Mimi Gross and The Ruckus Construction Company, Dame of the Narrows, mixed media, 1975.

Frank Stella at Deitch Projects

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Five works by octogenarian painter and sculptor Frank Stella fill Jeffrey Deitch’s large SoHo space with looping, colorful segments of fiberglass and aluminum, their scale dominating and delighting visitors in equal measure.  The work here, ‘K.144 Large Version’ is part of a series titled after a musicologist who catalogued 18th century Italian composer Domenico Scarlatti’s sonatas.  To create his complex and vibrant sculpture, Stella starts with computer models which are 3-D printed, developed, constructed by fabricators in the Netherlands and Belgium and finally finished back in the artist’s Hudson Valley studio.  Trucked down to SoHo on double-wide flatbed trucks, the final products make their presence felt.  (On view through April 20th).

Frank Stella, K.144 Large Version, fiberglass on foam core, 197 x 208 x 150 inches, 2014.

Pat Steir at Hauser & Wirth Gallery

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A record number of monumental paintings are dominating Chelsea galleries this month; at just over thirty-seven feet long, Pat Steir’s ‘Blue River’ at Hauser & Wirth Gallery is one of the largest and most absorbing.  Painted in 2005 and hung along more recent work, the gallery explains that the piece is intended to point viewers’ minds toward the vastness and power of the universe.  Washes of blue and white running down the canvas suggest a waterfall while a red border to one side evokes a stage curtain, nodding to the fact that this extremely large rendition of a natural scene is filtered through human imagination.  (On view through Dec 17th.)

Pat Steir, installation view of Blue River, Hauser and Wirth Gallery, Nov 2022. Blue River, oil on canvas, 135 ¼ x 447 inches, 2005.

Anselm Kiefer, Danae at Gagosian Gallery

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Gagosian Gallery’s enormous Chelsea space seems made to accommodate the monumental scale and theme of Anselm Kiefer’s latest paintings, which address contemporary migration via reference to Greek mythology and the Biblical exodus.  The title of this over 43’ long painting, ‘Danae,’ refers to the Greek myth of Zeus manifesting as a shower of gold to visit the imprisoned Danae, a liaison which resulted in the birth of their son, Perseus.  Here, a cloud of gold hovers above the cavernous hangar of Berlin’s now-closed Tempelhof Airport, a space that has been used to house refugees, as if to rain blessing on the imperiled populations that have taken refuge there. (On view through Dec 23rd).

Anselm Kiefer, Danae, emulsion, acrylic, oil, shellac, gold leaf, coal, metal and wires on canvas, 149 5/8 x 523 5/8 inches, 2016 – 2021.

Luiz Zerbini, Dry River at Sikkema Jenkins & Co

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So large it’s an immersive experience just to stand in front of it, Brazilian artist Luiz Zerbini’s painting ‘Dry River’ at Sikkema Jenkins & Co juxtaposes an organizing grid against abundant plant forms.  Drawing inspiration from diverse sources including Brazilian tower blocks and his own personal garden, Zerbini’s practice revels in the abundance of natural design while prompting viewers to consider how human planning does (or does not) coexist harmoniously. (On view in Chelsea through Oct 15th).

Luiz Zerbini, Dry River, acrylic on canvas, triptych: 118 1/8 x 236 ¼ inches, 2022.

Ugo Rondinone at Gladstone Gallery

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Like his colossal humanoids made of rough-hewn blocks of stone at Rockefeller Center in 2013 or his colorful rock stacks located outside of Las Vegas, Ugo Rondinone’s towering sculptures at Gladstone Gallery offer a transformative experience.  Titled ‘nuns + monks,’ the three figures are scaled up bronze versions of stones broken in ways that resemble figures in voluminous ecclesiastical garments.  Rondinone explains that nuns and monks exist as ‘vessel and beacon, human body and mystical source,’ and therefore represent the possibility of new metaphorical interpretation. (On view in Chelsea through June 18th.  Masks and social distancing are required.)

Ugo Rondinone, Installation view of ‘nuns + monks’ at Gladstone Gallery, May 2021.

Carol Bove, Chimes at Midnight at David Zwirner

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Crushed tubular steel in an electric orange color provocatively juxtaposes and compliments salvaged sheets of rolled steel in Carol Bove’s dramatic sculptural installation at David Zwirner Gallery.  Titled ‘Chimes at Midnight’ after a 1965 Orson Wells film in which two characters speak of mortality, the sculptures’ industrial materials summons the past while soft, malleable-looking orange segments speak to a future in formation.  In its reckoning between past and present, the sculptures continue Bove’s engagement with history in her current sculptural commission on the façade of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  (On view at David Zwirner Gallery).

Carol Bove, installation view of Chimes at Midnight at David Zwirner Gallery

‘Claes & Coosje: A Duet’ at Pace Gallery

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Right after the giant fork holding spaghetti and a meatball, the monumental sculpture ‘Dropped Bouquet’ is an immediate draw in Pace Gallery’s new show of collaborative work by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen from the 80s onward.  Surrounded by lighthearted works evoking music (including canvas violas, lutes and a trumpet) and flying neckties and pieces of pie, the flowers elicit delight with their cheery color and disorienting scale.  (On view in Chelsea through May 1st.  Masks, social distancing and appointments are required.)

Oldenburg/van Bruggen, Dropped Bouquet, painted aluminum, 12’ 3” x 9’ 3” x 14’ 10”, 2021.

Jean Dubuffet at Pace Gallery

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Drawn to art made outside of the gallery system, the iconic late artist Jean Dubuffet pursued his own non-academic style in abstract installations meant to bring to mind scenes of busy urban life.  Chelsea’s Pace Gallery explains that ‘Le Cirque,’ a 13’ high sculpture from 1970 currently installed on 25th Street, recreated the ‘visual frenzy of an urban plaza.’ In an accompanying letter from the artist to his dealer, Pace founder Arne Glimcher, Dubuffet points to ancient sources of inspiration for this towering, encompassing sculpture, including stones placed at crossroads or assembled for commemoration.  (On view through Oct 24th.  Appointments, masks and social distancing are required.)

Jean Dubuffet, Le Cirque, polyurethane paint on epoxy, 13’ x 29’ x 31’, 1970-2020.

Tony Smith at Pace Gallery

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It comes as no surprise when pondering ‘Tau,’ currently installed at Pace Gallery’s 25th Street location, that sculptor Tony Smith began his career as an architect, building spaces designed to be experienced by bodies in motion.  Towering over visitors to the gallery’s 25th Street space, the sculpture’s sleek sophistication invites admiration from all angles.  (On view in Chelsea through June 22nd).

Tony Smith, (foreground) Tau, steel, painted black, 14’ x 21’ 6” x 12’ 4,” 1961-2 and (background) Source, steel, painted black, 9’ 5 ½” x 25’ 1/4” x 24’ 5 3/8,” 1967.

Mark di Suvero, Eppur si Muove at Paula Cooper

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“And yet it moves” is the translated titled of this new monumental steel sculpture by Mark di Suvero, referring to Galileo’s 17th century assertion (despite pressure from the Inquisition) that the earth is not stable. Likewise, this formidably weighty sculpture looks fixed but will rock on its axis if set in motion. (On view at Paula Cooper Gallery in Chelsea through Feb 3rd.)

Mark di Suvero, Eppur si Muove, stainless steel, 10.5 x 28 x 12 feet, 2017 – 2017.

 

 

Mark di Suvero, The Cave at Paula Cooper

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Geometric steel beams and panels dangle a pair of organic shapes in Mark di Suvero’s 2015 sculpture ‘The Cave’ at Paula Cooper Gallery, suggesting a manmade structure designed to offer up a natural form for our consideration. (In Chelsea through Dec 10th).

Mark di Suvero, The Cave, steel, 157 ½ x 172 x 132 inches, 2015.
Mark di Suvero, The Cave, steel, 157 ½ x 172 x 132 inches, 2015.

Anish Kapoor, She Wolf at Barbara Gladstone Gallery

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Anish Kapoor’s monumental sculpture ‘She Wolf’ appears to be tipping over under its own weight, or deliberately leaning to the gallery floor from its marble pedestal. Given the title, giant quasi-oval shapes suggest teats, though a covering of soil over the structure’s rocky forms ties it to the earth, creating a kind of living geology. (At Barbara Gladstone Gallery’s 21st Street location through June 11th).

Anish Kapoor, She Wolf, resin, earth and marble, 107 x 355 x 209 inches, 2016.
Anish Kapoor, She Wolf, resin, earth and marble, 107 x 355 x 209 inches, 2016.

Viola Frey at Nancy Hoffman Gallery

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Known for massive sculptures of men in blue power suits and seated nudes, the late Bay Area artist pushed the limits of her medium. Chelsea visitors can take the measure of this huge figure, who looks a little startled to have landed on the floor of Nancy Hoffman Gallery. (Through June 27th).

Viola Frey, Falling Man in Suit, ceramic, 74 x 89 x 73 inches, 1991.

Gladys Nilsson at Garth Greenan Gallery

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Traditional perspective takes a vacation in riotous new collages by Chicago Imagist artist Gladys Nilsson featuring monumental female figures created from and surrounded by consumer goods. This quail-eggs-for-nipples-Venus yolks it up against a fertile arbor backdrop. (At Garth Greenan Gallery, through Dec 6th).

Gladys Nilsson, A Girl in the Arbor #3, mixed media on paper, 2013.

Neo Rauch at David Zwirner Gallery

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As surreal as ever, Leipzig-based painter Neo Rauch’s latest canvases intrigue with their somnambulant cast of characters and dream-like scenarios. In ‘Guardians of the Night,’ pictured here, a crab-clawed woman who approaches a sleeping man seems more like a healer more than a menace; meanwhile, a drummer and a custodian linger near. (At Chelsea’s David Zwirner Gallery through Dec 20th).

Neo Rauch, Hueter der Nacht (Guardians of the Night), oil on canvas, 118 3/8 x 98 ¾ inches, 2014.

Pat Steir at Cheim & Read

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At eleven by eleven feet, New York painter Pat Steir’s monumental pours of pigment, oil and turpentine create glowing sheets of color in deep spaces that beckon and offer to engulf the viewer. (At Chelsea’s Cheim and Read Gallery through March 29th).

Pat Steir, Green, Orange and Mica, oil on canvas, 11 x 11 feet, 2013.

Rudolf Stingel at Gagosian Gallery

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Rudolf Stingel paints the sublime in his latest body of work, but from a distance. Working from vintage, found photos of his birthplace – Merano, Italy – the artist faithfully copies distortions from the camera, marks of age from the prints and then leaves the canvases on the floor of his studio, building in physical and conceptual distance between his New York audience and the Alps. (At Gagosian Gallery’s 21st Street location through April 19th).

Rudolf Stingel, Untitled, oil on canvas, 132 x 180 ¾ inches, 2010.

Emilio Perez at Galerie Lelong

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New York based artist and avid surfer Emilio Perez is known for dynamic abstractions resembling landscapes or water.  In his latest solo show at Chelsea’s Galerie Lelong, Perez’s 40 foot long, untitled painting on Masonite carries the eye around the corner on what looks like a long gush of water or fabric.  (Through Feb 1st).  

Emilio Perez, Untitled, stencil painting on masonite, 9 x 40 feet, 2013.

Sean Scully at Cheim & Read

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This monumental, eight-part painting may be an abstraction, but it was inspired by the winter colors of southern Bavaria, where artist Sean Scully spends time. (At Chelsea’s Cheim & Read Gallery through Jan 11th).  

Sean Scully, Night and Day, oil on aluminum, 110 x 320 inches, 2012.

KAWS at Mary Boone Gallery

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In the Chelsea tradition of bigger is better, New York based artist and designer KAWS presents two huge sculptures – each over 18 feet high – at Mary Boone Gallery that show his signature COMPANION figures in states of distress.  The gallery has been packed with visitors…but many fans don’t necessarily make for a good show.  Why do you think these works such a draw?   (In Chelsea through Dec 21st).

KAWS, Along the Way, 216” x 176” x 120,” wood, 2013.

Ruby Sky Stiler at Nichelle Beauchene Gallery

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Brooklyn-based artist Ruby Sky Stiler takes the seated nude to a new level with her ten-foot tall female figure.  Carved from foam, its stepped form nevertheless suggests weighty ancient architecture embellished with images of power-wielding women. (At Nichelle Beauchene on the Lower East Side through Oct 6th)  

Ruby Sky Stiler, Seated Woman, foam, acrylic resin, thermal adhesive, 2013.

Mark di Suvero at Paula Cooper Gallery

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Mark di Suvero’s huge new steel sculpture ‘Little Dancer’ at Chelsea’s Paula Cooper Gallery belies its title at 19 x 36 x 15 feet.  Still, in comparison to the larger structure, spiraling forms hanging from the larger, angular structure are as graceful as tons of steel can get.   (Through June 29th).

Mark di Suvero, Little Dancer, steel, 2010-12.