Mikey Yates in ‘The Midnight Hour’ at The Hole

Young Kansas City based artist Mikey Yates, whose ‘Summer Walker’ is a standout at The Hole’s current night-themed group exhibition, paints tranquil scenes that include a family making art together at the dining room table and women chatting at night on a rooftop.  Such scenes – whether populated by solitary people or multiple individuals – argue the pleasures and importance of domestic life.  Though the individual in this painting walks alongside a highway in relative isolation, light from the streetlamp, a yellow hydrant and glowing neon sign in the distance create a sense of well-being and purpose.  (On view through Feb 18th).

Mikey Yates, Summer Walker, oil, acrylic and oil stick on canvas, 40 x 30 inches, 2022.

Han Qin in ‘Blue’ at the Nassau County Museum of Art

Created in Hangzhou, China last summer and now on display just outside of New York City at the Nassau County Museum of Art’s ‘Blue’ exhibition, Han Qin’s ‘The Direction of Migration’ was inspired by the artist’s own journeys between China and Long Island.  Using a cyanotype process that involves exposing treated paper to sunlight, Han Qin – a professional dancer who choreographed a dance to accompany this work – arranged emigrant friends in dance poses on the paper.  Ethereal and suggesting natural upward movement, the piece pictures hopeful journeys.  (On view through Nov 1st.  Tickets must be purchased in advance).

Han Qin, The Direction of Migration (Diptych), cyanotype on paper, 3307 x 94.5 cm, 2019.

Dinh Q Le at PPOW Gallery

This 164-foot scroll by Vietnam-based artist Dinh Q Le depicts just one image – the immolation of a Buddhist monk in Saigon in 1963. Stretched out to great length, the scroll seems to add duration to the still photograph while connecting that event to current acts of extreme political protest. (At Chelsea’s PPOW Gallery through May 24th).

Dinh Q Le, The Scroll of Thich Quang Duc, 150 foot c-print scroll and gold lacquer box, 2013.