Julie Bena at Chapter NY

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

Whether they’re teeth or a quadrupled epiglottis, the line of metal balls in each of these three mouth sculptures by Julie Bena suggests ways in which language might follow Newton’s laws.  If each of these joyous, dismayed or just loud mouths spoke, would their words have a momentum that wouldn’t diminish?  How would the energy of each person’s thoughts change form as it manifested in each individual?  (At Chapter NY as part of the multi-gallery group exhibition Condo New York.  Chapter is hosting Adams and Ollman).

Julie Bena, installation view at Chapter NY, July, 2018. Foreground: 3 Mouths Are Largely Enough (Hearthy), powder coated metal, 8 ¾ x 11 x 2 ¾ inches, 2017.

Rachel Lee Hovnanian at Leila Heller Gallery

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

A huge, flawless bar of soap in Carrara marble acts as an icon of purity in Rachel Lee Hovnanian’s current solo show at Leila Heller Gallery.  The third in a series of consecutive exhibitions by the artist at this Chelsea gallery, the show encourages introspection and the chance to ‘clean up’ some mental baggage.  Assistant by gallery staff, a visitor can write down something (s)he’d like to eliminate from her/his life on one of the cast plaster soaps stacked against the gallery wall, then smash the soap with a mallet.  (On view in Chelsea through July 20th).

Rachel Lee Hovnanian, PURE Marble Large, carrara marble, 15 x 10 ½ x 3 ¾ inches, ed of 8, 2018.

Red Grooms in ‘Stereo Love Seats Hot Wheels’ at Marc Straus Gallery

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

Seated figures and seats themselves comprise the surprisingly engaging theme of Marc Straus Gallery’s summer group show, which includes Red Grooms’ 1974-5 ‘The Minister of Transportation.’  Long arms languidly crossed and propped up on a skinny knee, the art-deco styled ‘minister’ offers a small case of cigarettes as he puffs away himself atop a parade float featuring images of vehicles on the ground, in the sky and on the water.  (On view on the Lower East Side through July 28th).

Red Grooms, detail of The Minister of Transportation, mixed media, 53 x 38 x 68 inches, 1974-75.

Jonathan Trayte at Friedman Benda

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

Art & design merge in British artist Jonathan Trayte’s otherworldly habitat at Friedman Benda, where a chaise longue doubles as a lamp and a pink bedframe made out of pipes questions the use-value of sculpture.  Here, an irresistible painted bronze, steel, foam and neon sculpture titled Kandi defies explanation while enticing with its organic forms and pink glow. (On view in Chelsea through July 27th).

Jonathan Trayte, Kandi, painted bronze, stainless steel, foam, polymer plaster, pigments, adhesive, nylon flock, neon, 42.5 x 43.25 x 13.75 inches, 2018.

Chie Fueki in ‘Zig Zag Zig’ at DC Moore Gallery

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

The world fractures into patterns and planes in Chie Fueki’s energetic rendition of a redhead (painter Ellen Altfest) on her bike, a standout in DC Moore Gallery’s excellent summer exhibition.  In other works by Fueki in the show, women take the wheel in futuristic vehicles that traverse otherworldly landscapes.  (On view in Chelsea through August 10th.)

Chie Fueki, Ellen, acrylic, ink and colored pencil on mulberry paper on wood, 60 x 72 inches, 2017.