Didi Rojas at Launch F18

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

Young Brooklyn-based sculptor Didi Rojas makes portraits in the form of ceramic shoes, titling her current show at Launch F18 ‘Felt Cute, Might Delete Later’ after the selfie meme.  This sneaker is titled ‘I really don’t think I’m like other girls but whatever, you’ll believe what you want to believe,’ suggesting a speaker’s bid for independence and doubt that (s)he’ll be taken seriously.  In past work – yellow platform crocs or bright red high-heeled boots – Rojas has seduced us with standout fashions; here, more muted colors and everyday styles speak to identities we put on every day. (On view in Tribeca through June 11th).

Didi Rojas, installation view of ‘Felt Cute, Might Delete Later,’ Launch F18 Gallery, May 2022 featuring “I really don’t think I’m like other girls but whatever, you’ll believe what you want to believe,” ceramic, 11 x 4.5 x 5.5 in, 2021-2022.

Angelo Filomeno at Chart Gallery

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Angelo Filomeno’s latest works, now on view at Chart Gallery in his first New York solo show in seven years, lure visitors closer via bold color contrasts and a literal glow from his materials.  Appearing to be ‘painted with a sewing machine,’ as the New York Times once put it, the embroidered works on silk shantung resemble painting in presentation and scale but are marked by a richness of color and abundance of light afforded by their material.  Filomeno’s work never strays far from the theme of mortality; here, an iceberg illuminated by lightning brings our changing environment into focus.  (On view through June 18th).

Angelo Filomeno, Storm, embroidery on silk shantung stretched over cotton, 68 x 52 inches, 2022.

Ebony G Patterson at Hales Gallery

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In the darkened space of Hales Gallery’s Chelsea location, Ebony G. Patterson’s ‘night garden’ entices with elaborately cut works on paper and wall-mounted tapestry installations decorated with strings of beads, glitter and other alluring objects. Each features a female figure (here in pink) with missing face or other body parts, a representative of loss who is literally no longer whole herself.  Patterson explains that on occasions of mourning, it’s often women who are the public face of their family or community; as such, this central, sequined figure, like the garden around her, represents ‘beauty concealing trauma and violence.’ (On view through June 18th).

Ebony G. Patterson, ‘….in the swallowing…she carries the whole…the hole’ (partial view), hand-cut jacquard woven photo tapestry with appliqué, fabric, plastic, beads, feathers, trim, glitter, and wood mounted on wallpaper in two (2) parts, 50 3/8 x 86 1/4 x 5 7/8 in, 2021 – 2022.

Andreas Gursky at Gagosian Gallery

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Look at photos of the Streif ski slope in Kitzbuhel, Austria and it’s clear why it’s considered to be one of the most dangerous in the world.  Still, its steep downward angles are nothing compared to Andreas Gursky’s version of the run, now on view in his current solo show of new photography at Gagosian Gallery.  Monitors mounted along the run show skiers wiping out, but all is calm on the course.  The new work is alert to dangers of another sort as well, addressing climate change and the deleterious effect of making fake snow. (On view in Chelsea through June 18th).

Andreas Gursky, Streif, Inkjet print and Diasec, 120 7/8 x 94 1/8 x 2 7/16 inches, 2021.

Bea Scaccia at JDJ Gallery

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Hair, clothing and jewelry were of utmost importance in the small town where Italian artist Bea Scaccia grew up.  Now a New Yorker and long-since escaped from the cultural norms of her youth, the artist is showing painted assemblages at Tribeca’s JDJ Gallery of items – wigs, gloves and ornaments – that allow individuals to role-play through dress.  Titled, ‘A belief in physio-gnomic principles,’ this grouping of ringlets and puffs of fur hints at a figure without revealing one, mock-suggesting that accoutrements make the person. (On view through May 27th).

Bea Scaccia, A belief in physio-gnomic principles, acrylic on canvas, 42 x 42 inches, 2022.