A lone palm stands peaceful and unmolested above the collision of man-made material and nature photography that is Letha Wilson’s ‘Steel Face Concrete Bend (Kauai Palm)’ at GRIMM on the Lower East Side. Inside a steel frame, concrete printed with a landscape photo abuts an actual photographic print as man and nature messily come into contact. (On view through April 22nd ).
British painter David Hepher explains that like landscape painters before him (Constable, Turner, Cezanne), he paints spaces with which he’s familiar, returning again and again to explore nuances of the well-known. For Hepher, that means South London tower blocks, hulking brutalist buildings whose concrete walls have seen better days. Merging distant views and closeups of spray painted walls and graffiti, this painting both closely examines tower life and keeps it at a distance. (At Flowers Gallery in Chelsea through Dec 10th).
Doris Salcedo’s interconnected concrete-filled wardrobes are a standout in her beautiful, somber show at the Guggenheim Museum; using personal possessions, Salcedo uses the furniture to speak to the suspended lives of political detainees and the ‘disappeared’ in her native Columbia. (Through October 12th).
Doris Salcedo, installation view of Untitled Works, 1989-2008, Sept 2015.
Visit a New York City park in the summer and you’ll find clusters of kids filling water balloons at fountains identical to LA artist Fiona Connor’s handmade replica of a cast concrete water fountain. Connor’s indoor version offers more peaceful and contemplative refreshment, however, on its own in the back room of Lisa Cooley Gallery. (On the Lower East Side through August 21st).
Fiona Connor, On What Remains (fountain), concrete, EPS foam, antique brass hardware, plumbing supplies, steel, ply, paint and coatings, car battery, Jabsco pump, potable water, 36 x 24 x 36 inches, 2015.
A sandblasted garden sculpture decorated with bronze sausage is a gratifying opener at Marlborough Gallery for fans of Tony Matelli’s offbeat humor and meticulous craft. But it’s the inverted, nude Adam and Eve sculptures in the back gallery that make the show unmissable. (In Chelsea through June 20th).
Tony Matelli, Warrior (detail), concrete and painted bronze, 55 x 21 x 17 inches, 2015.
