A ghostly face and a walking figure arise out of a tangle of clothing in Thornton Dial’s energetic 2007 work ‘Winter Jackets.’ The late self-taught artist returns to political themes in this show – the first since his passing in January. Here, we ponder the movement of a solitary (uniformed?) individual who strides forward with purpose. (At Marianne Boesky Gallery in Chelsea through June 18th).
Known for sculptures that initiate processes that yield attractive results (like an engine block transformed by gorgeous copper sulphate crystals), British artist Roger Hiorns goes for a gritty sci-fi feel in the back gallery at Chelsea’s Luhring Augustine. Compressors pump air through grimy car parts creating billows of soap suds that make these quasi-organic figures appear sentient, if barely. (Through Oct 18th).
Roger Hiorns, installation view at Luhring Augustine Gallery, Chelsea, Sept 2014. All works: Untitled, plastic, compressor, and foam, 2014.
It takes a few hours to get going, but by the end of each day, Virginia Overton’s makeshift hot tub (heated by a coffee maker pumping water in and out of the tub) has gotten warm, if not necessarily inviting. The DIY sauna effect is complete with the other piece in the show – a gallery wall covered with Eastern red cedar cut from Overton’s family farm that fills the space with natural fragrance. (At Mitchell-Innes & Nash’s Chelsea gallery through April 6th).
Virginia Overton, ‘Untitled (hot tub),’ cast iron tub, coffee maker, vinyl tubing, limestone, brick, 2013 AND ‘Untitled (juniperus virginiana),’ eastern red cedar, 2013.
