Using his signature long exposure technique, Matthew Pillsbury turns his lens for his latest show, ‘Sanctuary’ at Benrubi Gallery, on basic rights – assembly and expression – that are often taken for granted. Here, a participant pauses in front of Matthew Chavez’s ‘Subway Therapy’ project, which provided pens and post-its for New Yorkers to express their thoughts after the 2016 presidential election. (On view in Chelsea through Nov 22nd).
Kathleen Ryan at Arsenal Contemporary
Kathleen Ryan creates colossal pearls from bowling balls in her New York solo debut at Arsenal Contemporary on the Lower East Side. This piece and others shift our expectations of scale and turn quotidian balls into oversized, luxury jewelry. (On view through Nov 5th).
Claes Oldenburg at Pace Gallery
Claes Oldenburg’s new sculptures remix objects familiar from his and parter Coosje van Bruggen’s career (a pencil once proposed as a New York monument, a banana skin flapping in the wind, yellow and brown potato chips). Collectively titled ‘Shelf Life,’ Oldenberg’s relatively small-scale assemblages beg the question of an idea’s staying power and continued relevance. (At Pace Gallery’s 24th Street location through Nov 11th).
Keith Mayerson at Marlborough Contemporary
From Graceland to the former steel town of Bethlehem, PA, an assortment of iconic ‘American’ locations inspired Keith Mayerson’s ambiguous portrait of the country at Marlborough Contemporary. Here, Three Mile Island represents conversations around the definition of ‘clean’ power as the famed sight of a 1979 accident has been slated to close in 2019. (On view in Chelsea through Nov 11th).
Barbara Chase-Rimboud at Michael Rosenfeld Gallery
Inspired to reconsider Malcolm X’s ideology while participating in an Algerian arts festival in 1969, Barbara Chase-Rimboud began a series of bronze sculptures, titled after the activist, fourteen of which are now on view at Michael Rosenfeld Gallery. Created with a knotted silk base and bronze forms made by casting worked sheets of wax, the mix of materials signals strength and finery. (On view in Chelsea through Oct 28th).