Once known for embedding mind-altering drugs and plants in psychedelic collages encased in resin, Fred Tomaselli has shifted his interest to other recreation in new work at James Cohan Gallery in Tribeca. Now an avid urban gardener, the Brooklyn-based artist looks to the natural world for a non-chemical high, describing the garden as a place for ‘preservation and communal care.’ Here, the lush petals of a ‘Mister Lincoln’ rose are made of collaged red images, from a Coke can to a tomato, set against a blue sky. Though the work’s dominant colors of red and blue signal partisan politics, they appear less at odds in a natural setting. (On view in Tribeca through June 27th).
