Pattern Pulp

Tuesday's Gallery Picks




gallerypicks_patternpulp98

The artists in this week’s gallery picks feature portraiture as a means of exploring heritage and storytelling.

*            *            *

1.In Alex Katz’s new work, rather than filling each frame, the subjects are assigned to the margins with black space occupying most of each canvas. What is striking about these new portraits is both the depth and diversity of the black paint contrasted against the dramatically studio-lit figures. Presented within a ‘widescreen’ format, the figures become both cinematic and theatrical, resembling performers caught mid-motion by a spotlight at Timothy Taylor Gallery
2. Vanessa Prager’s “imagined” portraits cross the border between the figurative and the abstract with diplomatic immunity. “I made this series to tell stories and as with any story, you need to zoom-in to get the details and zoom-out to grasp the larger thematic concerns.” at Richard Heller Gallery
3. The work of painter and sculptor America Martin is informed by both her Colombian lineage and strong affinity for modernism allowing for a dynamic interplay between cultures, styles, and techniques. Her new series explores familiar themes and subjects within Martin’s practice – female nudes, scenes of musicians, and portraits of indigenous peoples – in oversized depictions that are both iconic and enigmatic, inviting the viewer to further inquiry  at JoAnne Artman Gallery
4. Hung Liu’s artistic practice investigates the complex interactions between individual memory and history, and documentary evidence and artistic expression, among other themes. Her richly-rendered paintings are vivid and powerful, their subjects drawn from personal experience, cultural and political events, literature, and photography at Palm Springs Art Museum
5. Lynnea Holland-Weiss’ exhibition Unfold All Over is filled with large figurative paintings full of mood, color and pattern that delve into our human instincts and the mystery of being at Store 1026
6. Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic raise questions about race, gender, and the politics of representation by portraying contemporary African American men and women using the conventions of traditional European portraiture at Brooklyn Museum

February 24, 2015 | By: Shayna Kulik

Luke Archer's Natural Markings




Luke Archer Patterns

In the world of composition, inspiration and random pen marks, Luke Archer excels at all. His style incorporates natural stone surfaces, silhouettes, tools and machines to create uniquely patterned prints. Subtle and texture-filled, Archer’s style is reminiscent of a moving wave in the fashion world – one that cues the 80’s and early 90’s. It merges old school marbling techniques with clean-edged geometry – and brands like Acne, Aritzia and American Apparel have all been a part of resurrecting this style. To deep dive into Archer’s portfolio, click here. To see some other interesting interpretations, check out Jen Altman, Santtu Mustonen and Lisa Toff.

 

February 23, 2015 | By: Shayna Kulik

Tuesday's Gallery Picks




gallerypicks_patternpulp97

Each artist in this week’s gallery picks has cultivated their own unique language of expression in their respective bodies of work.

*            *            *

1. Constance Lowe’s exhibition, Air to Ground, consists of highly textural geometric collages. These works are all part of Lowe’s Garden City series, 2013 to the present, which, formally and conceptually, evolve from US geological landsat (NASA land satellite) photographs that depict the circle-and-grid-shaped center-pivot irrigation farming patterns that dot the Midwest’s landscape at Ruiz-Healy Art
2. Using the concept of the graffiti tag as a starting point to craft a secret language of symbols, RETNA’s canvasses are messages known to him and his inner circle alone. Each block of text is a sophisticated system of hieroglyphs, calligraphy and illuminated script. “Articulate & Harmonic Symphonies of the Soul” includes RETNA’s most important pieces of recent years and a careful selection of his newest works on canvas by the artist at Hoerle-Guggenheim Gallery
3. Important late works of Serge Poliakoff are juxtaposed with a small selection of works from 1950 and 1951, in order to illustrate the circular nature of his practice at Timothy Taylor Gallery
4. Liz Nielsen’s work in Wolf Moon is a contemporary application of one of the best known and most engaging avant-garde photographic processes, the photogram, whereby an image is created without a camera by placing objects directly onto photographic paper and exposing them to light at Denny Gallery
5. The Musical Box, features two pairings of artists:John Newman and Cary Smith; and Evie Falci and Robert Otto Epstein at Jeff Bailey Gallery
6. On the 20th anniversary of Nancy Graves’ death, Mitchell-Innes & Nash presents work from the first half of her artistic career, 1969 to 1982, and features painting, drawing, sculpture, and film. For Graves, the revelations of contemporary scientific research and the excitement of new discoveries were integral to the artist’s artistic practice at Mitchell-Innes & Nash

February 17, 2015 | By: Shayna Kulik

Morag Myerscough for J.Crew




Morag Myerscough_Jcrew

J.Crew recently teamed up with the talented Morag Myerscough to design their London storefront on Marylebone High Street. Here are a few images from their blog, shot by the talented Kasia Bobula, where Myerscough’s creative process is documented. As you can see, the colors bounce around with a vibrant fluidity. This piece is a playful exercise in color theory – one that has beautiful movement. Artistic brand partnerships are quite common these days – and a stellar one plays up to both strengths. We think this one falls under that category, what do you think?

 

February 12, 2015 | By: Shayna Kulik

Geometry & Spatial Design




Phuong Thuy nguyenEsther Stocker_Patternpulp

I recently stumbled upon two artists with parallels so strong, it seemed appropriate to write a piece about the similarities in their work. Meet Phuong Thuy Nguyen and Esther Stocker. Nguyen is from Budapest and works with woven objects and sculptural textiles, while Stocker is originally from Silandro, and is a master at perspective and spatial ambiguity.

Both work within the confines of a black and white palette and create illusionary geometry that manipulates the context of space. I find both of these bodies of work to be very inspiring- from the cast shadows and collaged lines to the intricate folding and origami-like repeats. It would be fun to see a grand collaboration between these two women, wouldn’t it?

 

February 11, 2015 | By: Shayna Kulik

Tuesday's Gallery Picks




gallerypicks_patternpulp96

Whether pulled from tradition or passion, we love the way these artists use color to express themselves and their worlds.

*            *            *

1. Employing materials typical to Mali, namely woven and dyed cloths, hand-embroidered and stitched together, Abdoulaye Konaté draws on the West African tradition of using textiles as a mode of communication and commemoration at Blain|Southern
2. Beyond the aesthetics of the race, Brian Alfred explores the global threads that feed into making all aspects of the race possible. Depicting both pieces and scenes of tracks across the world, oil slogans, and referencing companies that contribute monetarily to the races, he broadens his global consciousness.at AMERINGER | McENERY | YOHE
3. Recognized for exceptional color intensity, William Pachner’s works often depict erotic and biblical themes. His drawings and paintings contain a paradox of meanings: the form, movement, and gesture affirm vitality, yet they are tinged with horror and violence. Loss and absence—of sight, family, and homeland, alongside the personal and artistic annihilation Pachner has faced—are represented in various configurations unique to each composition at Mindy Soloman Gallery
4. Alicia McCarthy’s energetic works weave together color, pattern and occasional lyrical or understatedly profound phrases. The artist is drawn to the discarded. Digesting the city’s landscape, ambivalent everyday items sheared from their original intent are re-appropriated into intimate art objects at V1 Gallery
5. Soaked, Not Resting will examine the different ways in which renowned Color Field painter Helen Frankenthaler and emerging artist Aimée Parrott negotiate the picture plane, looking in particular at both artists’ deployment of staining at Pippy Houldsworth Gallery
6. Chamberlain, De Kooning & Others at Allan Stone Projects

 

February 10, 2015 | By: Shayna Kulik

Tracking Repetitive + Awesome.
On Instagram.