History looms large in succinct and powerful sculptures by Martin Puryear at Matthew Marks Gallery that include a huge civil war cap with a cannon hidden inside and a classical fluted column supporting a stylized shackle – a monument to Sally Hemings. Here, a precariously situated wagon reimagines the vehicles the Boers used to move into South Africa’s interior in the 19th century. Titled ‘New Voortrekker,’ after the term the Boers used for themselves, the sculpture’s wagon features a spiral staircase with a mirror at its base, as if to offer ascending/descending settlers a different view of themselves. (On view in Chelsea through Dec 19th. Masks, social distancing and appointments are required).
Martin Puryear, New Voortrekker, ash, American cypress, maple, mirror, 2018.
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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