The back glow behind the woman in Amanda Baldwin’s ‘Blushing Orchid’ and the neon-like outline of flowers against the wall suggest that the artist has a paintbrush in hand and her mind in the digital realm. The surreal, collage-like effect of pairing a realistic eye with Photoshop features or delicate blooms with blanched fern fronds deliberately juxtaposes the pleasure of looking in the digital and analogue realms. (On view at Thierry Goldberg Gallery through April 28th.)
This nearly ten-foot high bamboo and rattan sculpture by Sopheap Pich is a standout in the second iteration of the Cambodian artist’s two-part solo show at Tyler Rollins Fine Art in Chelsea. Inspired by a Louis MacNeice poem about reconciling opposites, Pich suggests seed pods and lungs with a piece that is 2-D, 3-D and larger than life. (On view through April 19th).
Worlds collide in Beijing-based artist Jia Aili’s huge, apocalyptic paintings at Gagosian Gallery in Chelsea. An ominous, oval-shaped portal appears to generate flashes of lightning and cause a disruption in space and time while to the left, a puffy, cloud-like figure shoots up toward a mysterious black orb. Whether this is an alien-invasion or some kind of terrestrial catastrophe, the drama is deeply absorbing. (On view at Gagosian Gallery’s 21st Street location in Chelsea through April 13th).
LA based artist Luis Flores deliberately employs the feminized craft of crochet to create self-portraits which undermine the concepts of masculinity he learned as a boy from his male relatives. Here, he fights with himself in an installation featuring a series of wrestling moves enacted by his body doubles and observed by his passive and skeptical wife. (On view at Salon94 Bowery on the Lower East Side through April 20th).
Vermont-based painter Susan Jane Walp cites early Renaissance artist Piero della Francesca and 20th century great Giorgio Morandi as influences on her painting style. Accordingly, Walp’s carefully tilted pummelo and spoon exude alertness, suggesting the objects depicted are literally poised for a diner. A cropped wine cork, pewter jug and glass egg cup extend off the canvas to allude to a wider spread of items in this measured yet rich array. (On view at Tibor de Nagy Gallery on the Lower East Side through April 14th).
