Tag: minimal

Mary Obering at Bortolami Gallery

Inspired by her love of art history and travel to Italy, New York-based artist Mary Obering infuses modern, minimal style with references to early Renaissance art to create dynamic and luminous paintings.  Bortolami Gallery’s current presentation of her work from 1972 – 2003 includes this 1992 painting that balances light and dark colors in a way that moves the eye around the canvas, creating a lively circular movement enriched by glowing panels of gold leaf.  Blocks of color in egg tempera – painted to show the artist’s hand through fluctuations of color – have an extra vibrant glow, adding to the uplift and pleasure of the piece.  (On view in Tribeca through Feb 26th. Masks and social distancing are required.)

Mary Obering, A2 + Y2, egg tempera and gold leaf on gessoed panels, 2 panels, total dimensions: 84 x 84 inches, 1992.

Tony Smith at Pace Gallery

It comes as no surprise when pondering ‘Tau,’ currently installed at Pace Gallery’s 25th Street location, that sculptor Tony Smith began his career as an architect, building spaces designed to be experienced by bodies in motion.  Towering over visitors to the gallery’s 25th Street space, the sculpture’s sleek sophistication invites admiration from all angles.  (On view in Chelsea through June 22nd).

Tony Smith, (foreground) Tau, steel, painted black, 14’ x 21’ 6” x 12’ 4,” 1961-2 and (background) Source, steel, painted black, 9’ 5 ½” x 25’ 1/4” x 24’ 5 3/8,” 1967.

Zipora Fried at On Stellar Rays

Thirty foot long sheets of paper, covered in Zipora Fried’s handmade marks in colored pencil and graphite hang like banners from the ceiling of On Stellar Rays, announcing the amount of time and effort Fried put into her project. Installed in folds, viewers don’t see the full extent of Fried’s mark-making but can still absorb the deeply calming cobalt and delft blue colors. (On the Lower East Side through Dec 4th).

Zipora Fried, installation view of ‘Late October’ at On Stellar Rays, Oct 2016.
Zipora Fried, installation view of ‘Late October’ at On Stellar Rays, Oct 2016.

Richard Tuttle at Pace Gallery

Richard Tuttle celebrates fifty years of art making with a show of work from his last 26 New York solo shows. ‘Titel 3’ from 1978 typifies Tuttle’s sometimes ephemeral arrangements; a washy drip of brown watercolor on the wall interacts with a crisp, green arch of paper, creating a succinct contrast between chance and deliberate gestures. (At Pace Gallery’s 25th Street location through June 11th)

Richard Tuttle, Titel 3, watercolor and paper, 7 11/16 x 9 7/8 inches, 1978.
Richard Tuttle, Titel 3, watercolor and paper, 7 11/16 x 9 7/8 inches, 1978.

Chris McCaw at Yossi Milo Gallery

It would trouble some, but the smell of burning paper is the norm in Chris McCaw’s photographic practice. Using powerful lenses, McCaw magnifies the intensity of the sun to the extent that it burns holes in the light sensitive paper he places in his homemade cameras. The effect is ethereal, as the sun literally carves a path through the sky over shadowy landscapes. (At Yossi Milo Gallery in Chelsea through April 9th).

Chris McCaw, From the series Sunburn, Sunburned GSP#884 (Mojave), three gelatin silver paper negatives, 12 x 40 inches, 2015.
Chris McCaw, From the series Sunburn, Sunburned GSP#884 (Mojave), three gelatin silver paper negatives, 12 x 40 inches, 2015.