At seven feet tall, Alex Israel’s shades are impressive. One coldly reflective lens propped against the wall in Metro Pictures’ summer group show ‘Noa, Noa’ seems designed less as sun protection than as proof of its wearer’s extreme fashionability. (In Chelsea through August 2nd).
Alex Israel, Lens, UV protective plastic, 2012-13.
Diversity is the message in Zach Feuer Gallery’s ‘Jew York’ summer group show featuring artists of Jewish descent; one of the standout pieces is kinetic sculptor Jon Kessler’s creepy ‘Magnum Opus,’ a noisy box with a rotating iPad set to show distorted portraits of onlookers. Powered by a mechanical kid turning a crank, this mish mash of high-tech/low-tech and fakery repulses and amuses. (In Chelsea through July 26th).
Jon Kessler, Magnum Opus, mixed media, 2012.
Summer’s here and so is the Chelsea gallery group show. One of the best so far is ‘Mixed Media Message’ at Barbara Gladstone Gallery‘s 21st Street location, where curator Neville Wakefield assembles works that use unexpected materials, including Dylan Lynch’s acrylic on steel barrels, Tony Labat’s out-of-reach grill and Kaari Upson’s silicone mattresses. (Through August 2nd).
The summer group shows have started in Chelsea with Marlborough Gallery’s ‘Endless Summer II/Still Bummin,’ a sprawling exhibition featuring Kaari Upson’s balcony railing, floppy as if melting off a building in the heat. Nestled in the gallery’s corner with a torn parade photo by Christian Marclay, both suggest summer traditions coming undone. (through June 15th).
Christian Marclay, Untitled (from the series ‘Fourth of July’) torn c-print, 2005. Kaari Upson, Balcony Railing, latex, 2013.