In 1977, James Wines partially buried twenty cars in a strip mall parking lot in Hamden, CT then covered them with asphalt to create an eerie auto graveyard. This maquette for that project, part of a group show at P! gallery on the Lower East Side, conveys a sense of quiet and disbelief upon discovering what looks like remains buried by ash. (Through Feb 26th).
Jocelyn Hobbie’s imaginary female figure is one step away from dissolving into the patterns that clothe and surround her; even her hair resembles wavy ribbons more than real locks. In the midst of all this visual input, the woman is a cipher, her far-away look suggesting she is only present physically. (At Fredericks & Freiser Gallery through June 18th).
Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, Sliced Stradivarius – Rose, canvas, felt, wood, cord, hardware, painted with latex, 45 x 18 x 7 inches, 2003.
Copenhagen-based painter Tal R’s latest solo show at Chelsea’s Cheim & Read features lounging female acquaintances rendered in his characteristic toned-down vibrant palette. Abstract sculpture, multiple patterned rugs, and a purple-haired model in this picture suggest an update on Matisse’s exoticism. (Through Feb 14th).
Tal R, Jacobe Smoking, pigment and rabbit skin glue on canvas, 48 x 34 5/8 inches, 2013.
Slipping into a red dress has adventurous connotations completely suppressed by Cezanne’s portrait series of his wife, Hortense Fiquet, who sat for hours on end as her husband’s patient model. Cezanne’s famous line, ‘Only I understand how to paint a red,’ is put to the test in works that also create psychological intensity by disregarding traditional perspective. (‘Madame Cezanne’ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art through March 15th).
Paul Cezanne, Madame Cezanne in a Yellow Chair, oil on canvas, ca 1888-90.
