Though German artist Tomma Abts makes no use of source material, preferring to conjure shapes and forms from an intuitive trial and error process, the shapes in ‘Fenke’ brings to mind origami forms, unwrapped packaging and more. Playing with our perception of depth, she even slices a corner from this soothingly green canvas. (At David Zwirner Gallery through Oct 25th).
Tomma Abts, Fenke, acrylic and oil on canvas, 18 7/8 x 15 inches, 2014.
To some, Leslie Hewitt’s conceptual photography will be maddeningly vague, to others, enticingly elusive. Propped against the wall as if it were an object or sculpture, it displays one book with its spine facing us – James Baldwin’s essays on race, ‘The Fire Next Time.’ This incendiary text rests next to a cooling lemon, an art historical symbol of mortality and moderation. (At Sikkema Jenkins & Co in Chelsea, through Oct 5th).
Leslie Hewitt, Untitled (Perception), Still Life Series, digital c-print in custom maple frame, 2013.
I saw a dog enthusiastically enjoying this sculpture at Barbara Gladstone Gallery with its owner…that is, until it was scared away when the animatronic creature raised its head in response to a periodic drip coming from an easy-to-miss fake ventilation shaft. This piece by LA-based artist Piero Golia suggests that even a faux dog’s powers of perception are to be reckoned with. (At Chelsea’s Barbara Gladstone Gallery, 24th St space, through Aug 2nd).
Piero Golia, The Dog and the Drip, animatronic dog, solenoids and sync device, 2013.
