Louis Fratino at Sikkema Jenkins & Co.

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on Comments are Disabled

Surprisingly, Louis Fratino’s still lives can be the most dynamic of his works – a sink full of dishes or an arrangement of fish in a market stall appear as a jumble of curving or stacked forms in constant motion.  In ‘Latteria,’ from Fratino’s current show at Sikkema Jenkins and Co., the artist creates an intriguing balance of action and repose as he combines the bustle of the figures in the café, tables that tilt and floor tiles that rear up with the stillness of the central figure who sits with a quiet and pensive look.  (On view in Chelsea through Dec 9th).

Louis Fratino, Latteria, oil on canvas, 47 x 42 inches, 2023.

Hilary Harkness at PPOW Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on Comments are Disabled

In the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s audio guide to its famous 1866 painting ‘Prisoners from the Front’ by Winslow Homer, the Union general Francis Channing Barlow is described as a ‘restrained Northern Puritan’ type vs the ‘dashing and impulsive’ Southerner at center. In Hilary Harkness’ version of the painting, seen here and now on view at PPOW Gallery, Barlow is nothing of the sort.  In a series of paintings that Harkness created over a four-year period from 2019 to 2023, she reimagines Barlow as a trans man, in love with Charles, the Black Union solider pictured here (a major alteration from the original), who fights with such single-minded fervor for the Union that he pauses only briefly (and secretly) during battle to give birth to Charles’ child.  Told through meticulously detailed paintings that picture Charles’ heroics while documenting the racial injustices and oppression of Confederate culture, Harkness’ narrative is both absorbing and unforgettable.  (On view through Nov 11th in Tribeca).

Hilary Harkness, Prisoners from the Front (1866), commissioned by Arabella Freeman, oil on panel, 12 x 19 inches, 2019.

Willie Stewart at Nicelle Beauchene Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on Comments are Disabled

Warhol’s poppies, Roy Lichtenstein’s 1964 painting ‘Gullscape’ and a urinal recalling Duchamp’s ‘Fountain’ all make an appearance in Willie Stewart’s new 3-D, wall-mounted sculpture now on view at Nicelle Beauchene Gallery, signaling the artist’s intent to make something new from modern art samplings. Set upon a support that resembles a shelf or mantelpiece, Stewart’s Springer Spaniel represents the idea of the loyal family pet; paired with Warhol’s poppies, flowers associated with remembrance, the piece turns nostalgic and wistful.  (On view through Nov 25th).

Willie Stewart, Dog (Springer Spaniel), colored pencil with ink, gouache, and graphite on cotton board, polychrome wood and acrylic on canvas over artist-made panels, 60 h x 69 w x 5.5 d inches, 2023.

Sui Park at Sapar Contemporary

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on Comments are Disabled

Water worn rocks, amoebas, cells, sea creatures and more come to mind in Sui Park’s exhibition of colorful abstract sculpture at Sapar Contemporary in Tribeca.  Crafting her work from looped cable ties and monofilaments, Park turns mass-produced plastic materials into artworks that, ironically, foster appreciation of the natural world. This installation’s handsome black background color is somewhat misleading; titled ‘Sprinkles,’ Park has explained that she was inspired by dessert sprinkles.  (On view through Nov 27th.)

Sui Park, Sprinkles, cable ties, hand-dyed cable ties, variable size, 2023.

Rebecca Morris at Bortolami Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on Comments are Disabled

In a recent interview, Rebecca Morris explained that color is the content of her painting.  On view through Saturday at Bortolami Gallery in Tribeca, Morris’ light pink, blue and green abstractions are easy on the eye, even when accented by attention-grabbing metallic colors.  All titled just with the date of their making, it’s up to the viewer to puzzle out how each artistic decision – the checkerboard pattern, the shape of each zone of color and the variety of pink tonal contrasts in Untitled (#04-23), for example – creates meaning and mood.  In this painting, Morris considers cultural values placed on color saying, “Gold makes pink important…Often pink is seen as pretty, and pretty gets devalued.”  In this opulent, complex and intellectually engaging painting, pink steals the show.  (On view through Nov 4th).

Rebecca Morris, Untitled (#12-23), oil and spray paint on canvas, 2023.