Tag: faces

Tau Lewis at 52 Walker

Six monumental heads tower over visitors to Tau Lewis’ installation of totemic sculptures at 52 Walker in Tribeca, offering a conduit to encounter the divine.  Calling Lewis’ new pieces a ‘new mythology’ and a ‘corporeal arena for those who move between temporal and heavenly realms,’ the gallery presents itself as stage for interaction inspired by Yoruban mask dramas in which masks are worn and spiritually activated.  Too large for actual movement, the heads convey a powerful solidity while textures and colors created from Lewis’ use of salvaged textiles nevertheless suggest imminent movement and liveliness.  (On view in Tribeca through Jan 7th.  Note holiday closures this week.)

Tau Lewis, Homonoia, steel, enamel paint, acrylic paint and finisher, repurposed leather and suede, organic cotton twill, and coated nylon thread, 88 ½ x 68 x 26 ¼ inches, 2022.

James Rosenquist at Ross and Kramer Gallery

Inspired by the palm fronds in his Florida garden and other plant life, James Rosenquist juxtaposed lips and flesh (visible in glimpses as abstract, cut out forms) with blossoming pink peonies in this ‘Flower’ series painting at Ross and Kramer.  The connection between women and nature is age-old, but the discomfort conveyed by fragmentary views of female faces is fresh and stops viewers from an easy consumption of beauty.  (On view in Chelsea through March 27th. Masks and social distancing are required).

James Rosenquist, Incarnation Incantations, oil on canvas mounted on board, 81 x 62 inches, 1989.

Cindy Sherman’s Tapestries at Metro Pictures

On the heels of iconic photographer Cindy Sherman’s latest solo show at Metro Pictures, the gallery recently hung three enormous tapestries by the artist in its back gallery.  Based on portraits created using filters and face-altering apps and posted to Instagram, the images don’t have the resolution to be printed large-scale but work wonderfully as tapestries, in which pixels translate to thread.  More profoundly distorted and infinitely creepier than Sherman’s printed photos, the tapestries dramatically move Sherman’s vision from screen to wall.  (On view at Chelsea’s Metro Pictures Gallery.  Masks and social distancing are required.)

Cindy Sherman, installation view of three tapestries at Metro Pictures Gallery, Nov 2020.

Anders Oinonen at The Hole NYC

It’s often hard to read a visage by Canadan artist Anders Oinonen, whose cast of odd characters is currently making faces on the walls of The Hole NYC on the Lower East Side.  This figure has turned his or her architectural face sideways, allowing cotton candy hair to float along the top of the canvas.  Though partially obscured in shadow, the face looks anxious, making this individual a perfect representative of the election anxiety faced by many Americans today.  (On view on the Lower East Side through Nov 15th).

Anders Oinonen, Untitled, oil on canvas, 30 x 24 inches, 2020.

Florencia Escudero in ‘A Love Letter to a Nightmare’ at Petzel Gallery

Under the rubric of ‘vamped Surrealism and Symbolism,’ Petzel Gallery’s summer group show considers contemporary artwork that channels the power of the subconscious.  At the gallery entrance, Florencia Escudero’s disembodied eyes and face greet visitors like a digital mirage.  Hand sewn and printed on satin and spandex, the sculpture’s material qualities are as evocative as the impossibly odd character herself. (On view in Chelsea Tuesday – Friday, 10am – 6pm through Aug 14th. Masks and social distancing are required.)

Florencia Escudero, Frog Licker, Hand-sewn, digitally-printed satin and silkscreened spandex, 3D-printed plastic, metal purse clasp, with hand-sewn velvet, foam, and spacer mesh base, and hand-sewn, digitally-printed satin, silkscreened spandex, foam, and spacer mesh parts, 6.5 x 13.5 x 5 inches, 2019.