Lindsay Adams in ‘Arcadia and Elsewhere’ at James Cohan Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on No Comments

Spread over James Cohan Gallery’s three spaces, the immensely enjoyable group exhibition ‘Arcadia and Elsewhere’ features paintings of nature from the realist to the abstract, the mundane to the sublime.  Many pieces portray idyllic natural landscapes, other scenes get more complicated, especially when humans or their traces appear. Here, Lindsay Adams’ Lonely Fire excites feeling through the fiery tones of the background and the lush colors of individual flowers that stand apart from each other while contributing to a whole that speaks to the beauty of variety. (On view through Feb 10th).

Lindsay Adams, Lonely Fire, oil on canvas, 60 x 72 inches, 2023.

Mika Tajima at Pace Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on No Comments

Known for turning sound into image, Mika Tajima has gathered aural data from brain activity and turned it into visual information in her latest ‘textile paintings,’ now on view at Pace Gallery.  Produced by an experimental textile lab in the Netherlands, the monumental artworks juxtapose minute readings with expansive artworks, a nod to an individual human’s relative insignificance in the face of geological time and in relation to big data. (On view in Chelsea through Feb 24th).

Mika Tajima, Negative Entropy (Deep Brain Stimulation, Yellow, Full Width, Exa), cotton, polyester, nylon, and wood, 135 x 204 3/8 x 2 ¾ inches, 2024.

John O’Connor at Pierogi Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on No Comments

John O’Connor’s enticingly colorful drawings at Pierogi Gallery’s Chelsea popup take viewers down the rabbit hole into surreal scenarios told with endlessly inventive typography and icons.  Here, the eye-grabbing ‘Car Crash’ pictures a fictional multi-car pileup in which cars of lesser value crash into increasingly more expensive vehicles, starting with a Honda Civic and reaching a Lotus and continuing with fictional cars (Dukes of Hazzard, Flintstones).  O’Connor explains that the spiraling drawing represents the transfer of kinetic energy from car to car, a stand-in for a transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich.  At the center of this dynamic, pulsing vortex is a worm hole, ready to transport cars, viewers and all into another place and time. (On view at 524 West 19th Street through Feb 10th).

John O’Connor, Car Crash, colored pencil and graphite on paper, 85 x 69.75 inches, 2023.

Sydney G. James at Jane Lombard Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on No Comments

Based on her mural that was destroyed by vandals in Miami in 2021, Sydney G. James’ ‘Serving Tee Liberation’ at Jane Lombard Gallery is a painted act of resistance.  Posing with a look of sage calm, James’ friend and frequent model wears a t-shirt that announces and celebrates female autonomy, a riposte to the slogans in red text on white backgrounds which reflect past derogatory comments aimed at the artist.  The painting pays homage to James’ friend Scheherazade W. Parrish, a writer and artist who wears a different text-bearing t-shirt daily during Black History Month.  Via murals, painting, text and video, James’ show expresses resilience and acknowledges the support of family and community that make strength possible. (On view in Tribeca through Feb 17th).

Sydney G. James, Serving Tee Liberation, acrylic, t-shirts, fabric, and gel medium on canvas, 113 x 91 inches, 2023.

El Anatsui, Garnett Puett and Lyne Lapoint in ‘Echoes of Circumstance’ at Jack Shainman Gallery

by Merrily KerrDon't Miss, Hottest ShowPosted on No Comments

Material generates form in ‘Echoes of Circumstance,’ a visually rich group exhibition at Jack Shainman Gallery of work by three artists (El Anatsui, Garnett Puett and Lyne LaPointe) whose work is driven by the non-traditional art materials they employ.  Hawaii-based 4th generation beekeeper Puett partners with bees who create honeycombs around steel structures, resulting in surreal forms.  Also using a (handmade) beehive, Canadian artist Lyne LaPointe’s ‘The Song of the Queen Virgin’ presents a mystical figure shrouded in fabric.  Internationally renowned Ghanaian artist El Anatsui draws inspiration from Kente cloth to make patterned, wall-mounted textiles of aluminum liquor bottle caps stitched together by copper wire.  (On view in Chelsea through March 2nd.)

Garnett Puett, (foreground) Forged Dance; Entropic Subconscious Matris (3), wax, forged steel, 40 ½ x 20 x 20 inches, 2019. … El Anatsui, (background) Skin of Earth, found aluminum and copper wire, 180 x 192 inches, 2006.
Lyne LaPointe, The Song of the Queen Virgin, antique handmade beehive, cotton mesh, ink, paper and varnish on linen in an artist frame, 83 x 44 ½ x 2 ¼ inches, 2022-23.