You won’t find wholesome fantasies of life in the American heartland in Iowan artist Timothy Wehrle’s surreal pencil drawings at Chelsea’s P.P.O.W. Gallery. Under rain clouds, a severed head acts as momento mori, while an upside down shoe studded with nails suggests a painful journey. (Through April 16th).
It’s telling that young New York artist Jeni Spota C.’s heavily textured paintings of individuals grouped around mother-figures are included in the Jewish Museum’s current group show of ‘outsider’ art. Inspired by early Renaissance painting as well as a psychic’s assertion that the artist is constantly surrounded by departed relatives, Spota’s work invites speculation on the spiritual realm. (At Brennan and Griffin on the Lower East Side through Feb 14th)
Jeni Spota C., Bird Woman (detail), oil on canvas, 36 x 42 inches, 2015.