Tag: light

Otto Piene at Sperone Westwater

Though Otto Piene’s involvement with Group Zero, a post-war avant-garde group dedicated to exploring light and motion in art, ended when the group dissolved in the ‘60s, his experimentation with light continued into late career.  This stunning ceramic sculpture resembling a rainbow at Sperone Westwater is characteristic of his ‘heavy images,’ made by pushing metallic glazes through a screen onto clay before firing.  (On view on the Lower East Side through Jan 16th. Masks and social distancing are required.)

Otto Piene, Grosse Regenbogen (Ohne Titel), glaze on clay in three parts, 37 3/8 x 56 1/8 x 2 3/8 inches, 2014.

Neri Oxman at the Museum of Modern Art

New York Art Tours celebrates the Museum of Modern Art’s reopening to the public today with a closer look at a panel by Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at MIT’s Media Lab Neri Oxman from her reopened exhibition, ‘Material Ecology.’ This wax and resin panel is the first piece visitors encounter in an exhibition that showcases materials and processes that collaborate with nature. The panel’s attractively undulating structure is determined by the need to transmit light and accommodate heat change.  (On view through Oct 18th.  View MoMA’s new guidelines before visiting.)

Neri Oxman, detail of Cartesian Wax, rigid polyurethane casting resin composite and machinable wax, 2007. Collaborators and contributors: Mikey Siegel; MIT Center for Bits and Atoms.

Olafur Eliasson in ‘The Return of the Real’ at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery

Changing light and the effect of light on architecture are two recurring themes in Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson’s work and in his new sculpture ‘Return of the Arctic light sphere,’ on view in its own gallery at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery in Chelsea.  A strong LED light inside the sphere passes through blue glass and Fresnel glass, a material once used in lighthouses to increase the intensity of light.  Walk around the suspended sphere and the shadows change constantly, creating mesmerizing effects and giving viewers pause to consider the complexities of the sculpture’s geometry.  (On view Tues – Fri by appointment through August 28th.  Masks and social distancing required.)

Olafur Eliasson, Return of the Arctic light sphere, stainless steel, colored glass (shades of blue), Fresnel glass, mirror, aluminum, paint (black), LED system, wire, 55 1/8 x 55 1/8 x 55 1/8 inches, 2020.

Hilary Pecis in ‘Dwelling is the Light’ at timothytaylor.com

West coast light and the pleasures of color define Hilary Pecis’ recent work at Rachel Uffner Gallery and Timothy Taylor Gallery’s current on-line show ‘Dwelling is the Light.’  Working from a photo archive that includes the homes of friends and family, Pecis creates vibrant portraits that leave out actual individuals but make you wish you could meet the characters who’ve created such sunny environments.  (On view at timothytaylor.com through May 15th).

Hilary Pecis, Morning, acrylic on canvas, 50 x 40 inches, 2019.

Doug Wheeler at David Zwirner Gallery

Light and space artist Doug Wheeler’s installation at David Zwirner Gallery makes light a transformative medium, turning the white cube into a glowing and changeable environment to challenge the senses.  Light disperses before our eyes as it fades from the bright glow of neon tubes installed in a recessed space to the darker areas of the wall, floor and ceiling at the end of the long rectangular gallery.  (On view in Chelsea through March 21st).

Doug Wheeler, 49 Nord 6 Est 68 Ven 12 FL, installation view at David Zwirner Gallery, Jan 2020.