In the corner of a cavernous space that opens to the outdoors, a man rests in his immaculate office next to a retaining wall holding back hundreds of dark cows with yellow tags in their ears. Such surreal juxtapositions are rife in Anna Conway’s meticulous imagined painted scenarios, prompting consideration of how space effects the psyche. (On view at Fergus McCaffrey through Dec 23rd).
Katharina Fritsch’s latest large-scale sculptures of familiar objects blown up to huge proportions and presented in strikingly vibrant colors are as enigmatic and enticing as ever at Matthew Marks Gallery. We immediately confront our mortality in the first gallery, with a skull and egg acting as a reminder of death and a symbol of life about to start. (On view through Dec 22nd).
Three leaves drift down towards the earth in glossy, saturated tones that evoke candy more than autumn colors. Part of an exhibition that considers Gary Hume’s aging mother’s fading memory, the artist’s signature fields of saturated color here suggest absence but not darkness. (At Matthew Marks Gallery in Chelsea through Dec 22nd).
Young LA-based sculptor Brian Rochefort takes inspiration from nature, modeling his ceramic vessels after a giant underwater sinkhole off the coast of Belize and a series of water-flooded caves in tropical climes among other natural wonders. Building up organic shapes from mud and clay, Rochefort covers their surfaces with ceramic, glass and glaze to create a wonder-inspiring experience of his own. (On view at Van Doren Waxter on the Lower East Side through Dec 22nd).
Astronauts simulate working in the weightlessness of space in Houston’s Johnson Space Center, where they perform tasks on models in a giant pool; captured by German photographer Thomas Struth, the lab appears to be suspended in space and time, submerged as if in jelly or under glass. (At Marian Goodman Gallery on 57th Street through Dec 22nd).
