The woman at the center of Nicole Eisenman’s portraits ‘Weeks on the Train,’ (the writer Laurie Weeks) is casually posed, but commands an unusually large amount of room. The space creates an aura around her and gives her a sense of approachability that eludes the two oddballs seated in front of her. (At Anton Kern Gallery in Chelsea through June 25th).
Taking an 80s aesthetic as inspiration, Ben Sander’s steel vase is a surprisingly sturdy support for an abstract design of floating shapes and heavily textured lines of lavender paint. Sander’s accompanying 2-D work behind likewise balances the substantial – thick marks resembling giant paint strokes – with unanchored shapes including ping pong and Wiffle balls to offer an amusing musing on taste. (At Chelsea’s Asya Geisberg Gallery through June 25th).
Large mirrors intersect with clear glass frames in Berlin-based Polish artist Alicja Kwade’s first solo show at 303 Gallery, confusing the sightlines and adding intrigue to the gallery’s stunning new space on 21st Street. In the foreground, Kwade offers a beautiful brass sculpture that suggests the trajectory of a slowing spinning and falling hoop, arresting a sequence of events as a sculpture. (In Chelsea through June 30th).
East Asian tradition meets folk tale characters in the late Kirk Magnus’s ceramic demon, now part of the artist’s mini-30 year retrospective at James Cohan Gallery. Magnus’ deep knowledge of the world’s ceramic arts and his sense of humor are evident in a variety of vessels crafted with different techniques and featuring an assortment of oddball characters. (On the Lower East Side through June 26th).
From this single-projection light work from 1968 now on view at Pace Gallery to his stunning transformation of the Guggenheim Rotunda into a light installation in 2013 James Turrell suggest that light can manifest in physical form. Juke Green – glowing an emerald green that suffuses the room with color – conjures a giant gem or a portal into another world. (At Pace Gallery’s 534 West 25th Street location.)
