E.M. Saniga at Steven Harvey Fine Art Projects

IT professor and artist E.M. Saniga explains that his professional focus – mathematical model building – and his passion for painting are not so dissimilar, both involving abstracting reality in inventive ways. Saniga’s recent series at Steven Harvey Fine Art Projects was inspired by objects unearthed in an 18th century Quaker home and items from museum collections and the imagination. (On the Lower East Side through Nov 16th)

E.M. Saniga, ‘Early Shoes and Quaker Moths,’ oil on panel, 2012-2014.

Jessica Rankin at Salon94 Freemans

Using maps of the night sky as background, New York artist Jessica Rankin adds phrases and words from her own thoughts and found texts in a fragmented, poetic mediation on cosmic forces and personal experience. (At Salon94 Freemans through Dec 21st).

Jessica Rankin, The Ancient Seat of Indescribable You, graphite, ink and collage on paper, 42 x 42 inches, 2014.

Alan Belcher at Marlborough Gallery

Now based in Toronto, ‘80s downtown art influencer Alan Belcher makes a New York comeback at Marlborough Gallery this month with work including this ceramic plaque of a .jpg file kept tantalizingly closed. (On the Lower East Side through Nov 16th).

Alan Belcher, ____.jpg, glazed ceramic plaque, 10 x 7 ½ x 1 ½ inches, 2014.

Kay Hassan at Jack Shainman Gallery

Working from torn billboard posters, Johannesburg-based artist Kay Hassan created this monumental untitled piece at Jack Shainman Gallery over ten years ago. Explaining that it represented dispossessed people, Hassan points to the eye in the middle as a symbol of looking and praying for justice. (Through Nov 15th).

Kay Hassan, Untitled, paper construction, 268 ½ x 132 inches, 2001-03.

Hans Haacke at Paula Cooper Gallery

Ever politically minded, New York based artist Hans Haacke presents new work at Paula Cooper Gallery targeting the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s new fountains, funded by political conservatives, the Koch Brothers. Flanked by pictures of the fountain and seemingly buoyed by doctored $100 bills, Haacke’s Met façade offers businesses the opportunity to park a corporate name on the building. (Through Nov 22nd).

Hans Haacke, The Business Behind Art Knows the Art of the Koch Brothers, UV matted laminated color inkjet photo mounted on aluminum, photo-collaged hundred dollar bills, 2014.