Taking inspiration from medieval tapestries including ‘The Hunt of the Unicorn’ at the Met Museum’s Cloisters, Ariana Papademetropoulos’ new paintings at Vito Schnabel’s Chelsea gallery feature a unicorn that struggles towards its own unique experience of freedom. Here, set in a Renaissance-era wood paneled room, the mythical creature – who the artist sees as an alter-ego – rests on a bed that is simultaneously a watery landscape. This glimpse into a parallel world and the mirror with an emerging face on the left of the painting suggest that the unicorn may have escape portals that will allow it to slip its confines. (On view in Chelsea through Jan 7th. Note holiday closures this week.)
Ariana Papademetropoulos, Horror Vacui, oil on canvas, 91 ¾ x 108 ¼ inches, 2022.
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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