Gerald Lovell at PPOW Gallery

Tourist photos of Cala Deia in Mallorca tend to focus on the picturesque geometries of limestone houses rising on the island’s hills.  New York-based painter Gerald Lovell’s on-the-ground version of the age-old village at PPOW Gallery instead ushers viewers up a hilly street.  Embraced between a rocky outcrop on the right and the warm tan colors of the buildings on the left, greenery on one side and characteristic green shutters on the other, a pedestrian might feel the upward pull of the narrow lane toward more discoveries. Lovell’s current solo show features paintings of his friends as well as his recent travels and, he explains, celebrates the life he is getting to live.  (On view in Tribeca through March 9th).

Gerald Lovell, Portals (Cala Deia), oil on pastel, 60 x 48 inches, 2024.

Carlos Motta with Elio Miraña, ELO, Gil Farekatde Maribba, Higinio Bautista, Kiyedekago, Rosita, and Yoí nanegü at PPOW Gallery

Beautifully shot and installed in Tribeca’s PPOW Gallery, Columbian artist Carlos Motta’s ‘Air of Life’ video installation is reached by passing by sculpture crafted by Indigenous Brazilian craftsman Higinio Bautista. This particular collaboration began with Bautista’s retelling of a legend of shamans who transformed into animals to protect the people and land.  He prompted Motta to draw the figures, which Bautista then carved.  Once past the protective deities, gallery visitors take in soaring views of the Amazon while watching Indigenous South American musicians, activists, and community leaders explain their work in a c. 42 minute presentation on a screen and two monitors.  Commissioned for an exhibition related to Indigenous representation now on view at Museo de Arte Miguel Urrutia in Bogota, the works in the show give insight into to the lives of those working to protect tradition.  (On view through Oct 7th).

Carlos Motta, installation view of ‘Air of Life’ at PPOW Gallery, Sept 2023. Sculpture in the foreground: Carlos Motta and Higinio Bautista, Shaman Anteater, carved wood, 43 ¼ x 15 ¾ 16 ½ inches.