Tag: wood

Martin Puryear at Matthew Marks Gallery

History looms large in succinct and powerful sculptures by Martin Puryear at Matthew Marks Gallery that include a huge civil war cap with a cannon hidden inside and a classical fluted column supporting a stylized shackle – a monument to Sally Hemings.  Here, a precariously situated wagon reimagines the vehicles the Boers used to move into South Africa’s interior in the 19th century.  Titled ‘New Voortrekker,’ after the term the Boers used for themselves, the sculpture’s wagon features a spiral staircase with a mirror at its base, as if to offer ascending/descending settlers a different view of themselves.  (On view in Chelsea through Dec 19th. Masks, social distancing and appointments are required).

Martin Puryear, New Voortrekker, ash, American cypress, maple, mirror, 2018.

Raul de Lara at Ethan Cohan Fine Art

A cactus featuring a grinning mask greets visitors to Raul de Lara’s New York solo show debut at Chelsea’s Ethan Cohan Fine Art, but beneath the apparent levity are the hard realities of the artist’s migrant experience.  Though he employs humor to lift his audiences’ spirits, de Lara reveals the frustration and anxiety of life as DACA recipient in his autobiographical sculptures.  Surprising juxtapositions of forms, like this school desk studded with dangerous cactus needles, energize the work and, in this case, recall how the artist was hit on the hand by nuns at school who punished him for being left-handed.  De Lara gets the last laugh here by lodging a piece of gum under the desk, a mini act of rebellion.  (On view in Chelsea through Oct 17th by appointment.  Masks and social distancing are required.)


Raul de Lara, For Being Left-Handed, 2020, Pine, Chiclets Gum, Acrylic, Brass, Steel, Particle Board, 27 x 12 x 13 in.

Leonardo Drew at Galerie Lelong

Newly represented by Galerie Lelong, Leonardo Drew’s inaugural show at the gallery arrives with a bang with an installation that resembles a hovering mass of exploded material.  Like the artist’s recently opened outdoor work at Madison Square Park, the piece offers an unexpected blast of color unfamiliar to fans of Drew’s black, white and wood-colored wall sculptures while continuing to ponder themes of destruction and regeneration.  (On view in Chelsea through August 2nd).

Leonardo Drew, Number 215, wood, paint and sand, dimensions variable, 2019.

Claudette Schreuders at Jack Shainman Gallery

Human connection is the subject of ‘In the Bedroom,’ South African artist Claudette Schreuders’ latest show of wood sculpture at Chelsea’s Jack Shainman Gallery.  Here, in ‘Guilty Bystander,’ Schreuders offers an intimate look at a pensive, uncomfortable character who is somehow implicated in an event that we don’t see, begging the question of whether one must be physically close to an activity to be involved.  (On view through June 22nd).

Claudette Schreuders, Guilty Bystander, jelutong wood, enamel and oil paint, 51 3/16 x 11 13/16 x 16 ½ inches, 2018.

Jorge Palacios at Danese Corey Gallery

Titled after the Japanese dolls that return to an upright state if knocked over, Spanish artist Jorge Palacios’ sculpture ‘Okiagari-Koboshi’ is so strikingly shaped, it’s viewers eyes that will keep returning.  Resembling a muscle-bound arm extending a slender fist or an oversized 3-D piece of punctuation, the tension between slim and full organic forms offers many interpretations. (On view at Danese Corey Gallery in Chelsea through May 4th).

Jorge Palacios, Okiagari-Koboshi, accoya wood, 65.75 x 47.25 x 39.375 inches, 2018.