Sarah Sze at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery

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

Ever aware of the evolving role of images as stand-ins for real objects in the digital era, Sarah Sze creates a wave in the form of photos, video and rotating projections at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery.  Titled ‘Crescent (Timekeeper),’ the installation displays fragmentary glimpses of the natural world on a rickety but orderly wooden frame.  Visitors who step close to explore a coyote crossing a road, a raging flame or a bird in flight experience a dynamic and evolving sculpture that offers an immersive experience in real time.  (On view in Chelsea through Oct 19th).

Sarah Sze, Crescent (Timekeeper), mixed media, wood, stainless steel, acrylic, video projectors, archival pigment prints, ceramic and tape, dimensions variable, 2019.

Roy DeCarava at David Zwirner Gallery

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

Roy DeCarava’s velvety toned black and white photographs aimed for expression, not documentation, seeking to capture scenes of African-American life in Harlem and beyond with ‘penetrating insight and understanding’.  Over one hundred silver gelatin photos now on view at David Zwirner Gallery in Chelsea celebrate the centennial of DeCarava’s birth while showcasing the artist’s ability to sensitively portray a variety of subjects, from the everyday life of families to thrilling portraits of jazz musicians like Jimmy Scott.  (On view through Oct 26th).

Roy DeCarava, Jimmy Scott singing, silver gelatin print, 14 x 11 inches, 1956.

Peter Voulkos at Burning in Water

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

Peter Voulkos’ influence is a constant presence in New York’s galleries if his actual rule-destroying ceramic sculptures are infrequently seen; Burning In Water’s current show of work from Voulkos’ ‘Stacks’ series manifests the artist’s deliberately imperfect forms.  Patched, split and tilting to the side, ‘Big Ed’ exemplifies the energy and expression Voulkos brought to his art.  Translation from the original ceramic to bronze adds durability to the dynamic.   (On view in Chelsea through Sept 21st).

Peter Voulkos, Big Ed (1/9), bronze, 40 x 27 x 28.5 inches, 1994.

Karl Lagerfeld in ‘Camp: Notes on Fashion’ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

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

‘Camp:  Notes on Fashion’ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art ends with a bang in a two-tiered gallery showcasing outrageous garments, from a wrapper resembling the contents of a TV dinner to a tiered ball gown of ruffled pink fabric that juts out from the shoulders and continues expanding as it descends to the ground.  Here, alongside earrings shaped like old-fashioned faucet handles, Karl Lagerfeld’s shower head necklace makes a clean break from tradition.  (On view on the Upper East Side through Sept 8th).

Karl Lagerfeld for Chloe, Necklace, autumn/winter, 1983-84, silver metal, pink, blue and clear crystals and pearl beads.

Carmen Herrera in City Hall Park

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

Carmen Herrera’s longevity as an artist continues to amaze; the informational texts for her installation of boldly colored abstract sculptures at City Hall Park declare her age (104) in the first line before going on to comment on the artwork.  In the 50s and beyond, Herrera was in the center of New York’s art world and at its margins, making artwork in conversation with the developing language of abstraction but underappreciated because of her gender and lacking funding to realize her plans for boldly colored sculpture.  Installed in the park, her architectural forms are in the company of landmarks including City Hall and the Woolworth Building.  Here, they speak to Herrera’s personal and political concerns, from a piece memorializing her late brother to a sculpture constructed of two interlocking forms that nod to Cuban/American relations.  (On view downtown at City Hall Park via the Public Art Fund through Nov 8th).

Carmen Herrera, Amarillo Tres, 1971/2018.