This we know for sure: any exhibition in which Nicolas Party’s name is attached is sure to draw in crowds. The artist himself has skyrocketed in recent years with his elusive yet bold lexicon that captivates and attracts eyes all over the world. While he may be more accustomed to exhibitions consisting solely of his own work, with Nicolas Party: Pastel, the artist wears two hats, as both participating artist and curator. In an unprecedented move, Party combines the work of centuries-old masters with many of his contemporaries working today. Reading the entire artist list might insight some confusion at first for the variety of names and time periods which the artists are a product of: Rosalba Carriera (1675-1757), Mary Cassatt (1844-1926), Edgar Degas (1834-1917), Louis Fratino (b. 1993), Marsden Hartley (1877-1943), Loie Hollowell (b. 1983), Julian Martin (b. 1969), Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Chris Ofili (b. 1968), Jean-Baptiste Perronneau (1715-1783), Billy Sullivan (b. 1946), Wayne Thiebaud (b. 1920), and Robin F. Williams (b. 1984). Linking all of the work together is its use of pastel as the medium.

Shara Hughes at Rachel Uffner Gallery

 
In her highly anticipated solo exhibition at Rachel Uffner Gallery, In Lieu of Flowers, Shara Hughes continued her exploration into landscape painting by focusing in on the representation of flowers. The flower as focal point is a deviation from Hughes’ previous works. Typical depictions of flowers generally exude joyous, upbeat feelings. Hughes infuses her floral landscapes with a range of emotion. Her paintings are hauntingly gorgeous, somehow emitting both attraction and anxiety on the same plane. The works feel like they have an energetic pulse, as though they could break free from the physical barriers of which they exist.

The 79th Whitney Biennial

Calvin Marcus  Ghost of Younger Self, 2019
Image courtesy the artist; Clearing, New York and Brussels; and David Kordansky Gallery, Los Angeles

Operating since 1932, the Whitney Museum of American Art’s Biennial has showcased a collection of artworks reflecting the current state of America at large. No easy feat, the biennial has grappled with such questions as what exactly qualifies as American art? Is it art representing the US population? For the year prior to its opening, the appointed curatorial team traverses the United States, visiting artists in search of the most significant, exhilarating, and relevant work. This year’s result of those efforts, led by co-curators Rujeko Hockley and Jane Panetta, has yielded an exhibition of 75 artists. Diverse in their mediums, interests, demographics, and generations, the included artists together create one of the most groundbreaking groups the biennial has exhibited. Three-quarters of the participants and under the age of 40 and people of color are a majority. Of the 75 artists, only five have previously exhibited in a Whitney Biennial. Some of our favorite artwork in this year’s rendition included work by Janiva Ellis, Marlon Mullen, Jennifer Packer, Jeanette Mundt, and Calvin Marcus among many others.

Jean-Michel Basquiat at The Brant Foundation

In 2019, The Brant Foundation opened a Manhattan outpost with an unforgettable show. Located in what once was Walter De Maria’s East Village studio, the space features multiple floors where its history feels palpable. With these various forces at play, it is only fitting for its inaugural show to feature one of the neighborhood’s most iconic and impactful artists. Curated by Dr. Dieter Buchhart, and organized in collaboration with Fondation Louis Vuitton, the exhibition featured works spanning the artist’s entire oeuvre. Though Basquiat’s work can feel ubiquitous, this particular grouping was a powerful testament to the artist’s impact over the course of his short life.

George Condo at Skarstedt

George Condo’s latest show at Skarstedt proved that the artist has the capacity to continue to stretch and push his practice. Featuring paintings, as well as expansive works on paper, Skarstedt mounted an epic showing of the artist’s undeniable mastery. While all works possessed psychological hints, they varied widely in color palette and figurative elements. Three massive, vibrantly colored paintings, measuring 11 x 10 feet, are awe-inspiring anchors to the show. In addition to galleries of detailed works on paper that have as much punch as his paintings, Condo created a suite of striking black paintings, unlike much of his colorful trademark work.

 
Amy Sherald at Hauser and Wirth

In her debut show with Hauser and Wirth, the heart of the matter…, Amy Sherald produced a series of portraits that reclaim the American Realist tradition. Sherald gained acclaim after producing a widely celebrated portrait of Michelle Obama for the National Portrait Gallery. The captivating body of work documents contemporary black experience, pairing the dark hued skin tones with striking colors making up the clothing and backgrounds surrounding the figures. The small amount of defining detail which Sherald provides is just enough to feel as though you know the essence of her subjects. She paints with a universal understanding of what it is to be a human, a gift for all in modern day.

Matthew Wong at KARMA

In October, KARMA opened the first exhibition of Matthew Wong’s work post-mortem. The exhibition was breathtakingly emotional, perfectly immortalizing the gentle soul of the incredible artist. Previous work by Wong embodied the daylight with hues of yellow, orange, and green predominantly taking over the canvas. In this body of work, Wong moves into the time of day when the sun is escaping the sky, specifically placing these works under the halo of the penumbra or the outer region of a shadow where light crosses over into dark. As specified in the title, Blue fills the gallery walls with works examining the ways in which this color can evoke various scenes, feelings, and human experiences. All of Wong’s work have evoked a certain level of melancholy and sadness but this latest showing does so with a new understanding of the artist behind the work.

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Combining the forces of three, powerhouse artists, MOOD at MoMA PS1 examines site, place, and time as they relate to American identity and popular culture, past and present. Featuring the work of  the 2018-19 Studio Museum in Harlem Artists-in-Residence, Allison Janae Hamilton, Tschabalala Self, and Sable Elyse Smith, the exhibit (housed at PS1 due to construction at the Studio Museum) provides three different artistic viewpoints into the same moment. Embracing the frequently used social media hashtag #mood, the artists acknowledge that all instances captured and labeled in this way can be both profound and commonplace. Any moment can be “a #mood.”

Sable Elyse Smith, Coloring Book 34, 2019. Silkscreen ink and oil sticks on paper, 60 × 50 in. Courtesy the artist. Photo: Adam Reich

Taken together, the artists work in a wide range of media and materials. With the freedom to explore this universal topic in their own ways, the artists’ resulting bodies of work feel honest, timely, and significant. Through each of the artist’s unique take on the curatorial theme, we are presented with distinct portrayals of the present moment in the United States.

Allison Janae Hamilton merges the genres of photography, sculpture, and installation to create an immersive experience so chilling, it will leave you pondering how it’s possible that Hamilton’s subject matter is based in reality. Growing up in the rural American South as a Black woman, Hamilton recounts the histories of such areas in her work as they relate to her cultural upbringing. She adds a sense of mysticism, focusing on palpable details of the Southern environment such as swamplands and white linen dresses worn by young girls. The tone surrounding Hamilton’s work is melancholy. She does not shy away from the contradictions of the beautiful yet mysterious lands of the South, their racial realities and how much of the past still remains.

For the past few years, Tschabalala Self has captivated us with her textile on canvas works that pay homage to her Harlem upbringing. In MOOD, Self debuts a new series of work, called “Street Scenes.” After spending some time depicting Bodega culture in her work, Self has moved her attention from inside the store to outside on the streets. The works include a trompe l’oeil element of brick walls that together form one scene. With this new body of work, Self continues her examination into the same narrative she has been exploring in recent years. While equally giving homage to the energy of the area she grew up in (and in honor of her return to the area by way of the residency), Self also aims to call attention to the disparity that exists on these very streets.

Sable Elyse Smith’s practice questions the instability of our social history and its many forms. At the root of her work is a visual language associated with the United States prison system. In MOOD, Smith appropriates objects commonly found in correctional facilities, such as ramen noodles, coloring books, and visitor tables, altering their typical presentation to produce a new understanding of the visual lexicon of prisons. Taking these ordinary objects and placing them in the artistic realm brings light to the issues encompassing the prison system, including class, race, labor, and memory.

An exhibition as vibrant as the artists themselves, MOOD is a must see for this summer. Hamilton, Self, and Smith each possess magnetic, stand-out practices and exist as three of the top changemakers in the contemporary art world. Their poignant portrayals currently on view truly encompass the #mood of our current state of affairs, different in their details but united in their message.

MOOD is on view at MoMA PS1 through September 8th.

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For the year prior to its opening, the appointed curatorial team traverses the United States, visiting artists in search of the most significant, exhilarating, and relevant work. This year’s result of those efforts, led by co-curators Rujeko Hockley and Jane Panetta, has yielded an exhibition of 75 artists. Diverse in their mediums, interests, demographics, and generations, the included artists together create one of the most groundbreaking groups the biennial has exhibited. Three-quarters of the participants and under the age of 40 and people of color are a majority. Of the 75 artists, only five have previously exhibited in a Whitney Biennial.

To piece together the 79^th iteration of the biennial, Hockley and Panetta were drawn to a common thread they saw across the country – the pressure that artists are facing in today’s landscape. Between incurring debt from M.F.A. programs, rising costs of studio space, and the closing of smaller galleries, the burden of working as an artist is ever-growing.

Both a milestone and substantial affirmation in an artist’s career, inclusion in the Whitney Biennial is no small feat. Though each artist’s work is moving, powerful, and important, to celebrate this year’s rendition, we are highlighting just five of our many favorite artists in the Biennial.

Janiva Ellis

Janiva Ellis’s one large painting on view presents multiple landscapes scenes on the same plane. Dominated by color as well as tensions of familiarity and strangeness, Ellis’ creates a hybrid painting featuring various modes of representation. The figures included are depicted in a range of style, cartoon-like and realistic, big and small. Ellis’ work is mesmerizing not just for its scale, but for its composition and detailed elements.

Marlon Mullen (1963-), Untitled, 2018. Acrylic on canvas, 36 × 26 in. (91.4 × 66 cm). Image courtesy NIAD Art Center, Richmond, CA; Adams and Ollman, Portland; and JTT, New York

Marlon Mullen

Marlon Mullen uses his painting’s as his own, non-verbal language. On the autism spectrum and unable to communicate verbally, Mullen has created his own, unique dialogue through his recreation of art magazines, such as Artforum and Art in America. Using the actual magazines as his source, Mullen makes subtle changes on his canvas, leaving out letters, thus changing the meaning. Though the source is recognized, Mullen’s abstract reworking lends itself to a personalized conversation surrounding the artist’s work.

Jennifer Packer (1984-), An Exercise In Tenderness, 2017. Oil on canvas, 9 ½ x 7 in. (24 x 18 cm). Private collection. Image courtesy the artist; Corvi-Mora, London; and Sikkema Jenkins & Co, New York. Photograph by Matt Grubb

Jennifer Packer

Jennifer Packer’s intimate portraits depict the artist’s family and friends for their humanistic traits. Using gestural brushstrokes, Packer works on her paintings at length, both adding and scraping away layers of paint over time. Though she never reveals the full representation of an individual, she captures each figures essence, conveying a spectrum of emotion on each canvas. Their perceived incompleteness invites the viewer to participate in the works’ narrative while also protecting the subjects’ own identities.

Jeanette Mundt (b. 1982), Born Athlete American: Laurie Hernandez I, 2018. Oil and glitter on canvas, 50 x 60 in. (127 x 152.4 cm). Image courtesy the artist and Société, Berlin. Based on a 2016 series of graphics by The New York Times

Jeanette Mundt

Jeanette Mundt’s four works on view each recreate photo composites of the members of the 2016 gold-medal winning U.S. women’s Olympic gymnastics team. Mundt combines multiple images that break down the moments that would lead to the teams’ victories. Similar to Eadweard Muybridge’s early studies of motion with the camera, Mundt captures the movements as multiple frames making up a single composition. By portraying these iconic moments in this way, Mundt explores the systems in place behind the competition itself. Further adding to this investigation was the USA Gymnastics sexual abuse scandal which broke soon after Mundt completed these works.

Calvin Marcus (1988-), Ghost of Younger Self, 2019. Watercolor and vinyl paint on linen, 101 5/8 x 79 in. (258 x 22.9 cm).
Image courtesy the artist; Clearing, New York and Brussels; and David Kordansky Gallery, Los Angeles

Calvin Marcus

Calvin Marcus’s five paintings on view present various narratives with no clear link. Each work is meant to be interpreted as its own, complete world. The painting’s suggest different themes, with various underlying emotions and tones. Disconnected from one another, Marcus’ works force the viewer to drop any larger meaning associated with the body of work. All very playful in their subject matter, Marcus explains, “The work has no tricks. It is as people see it and that’s fine.”

Calvin Marcus (1988-), Los Angeles Painting, 2018. Watercolor and vinyl paint on linen, 79 x 101 5/8 in. (200 x 258 cm). Image courtesy the artist; Clearing, New York and Brussels; and David Kordansky Gallery, Los Angeles

The 2019 Whitney Biennial will be on view through September 22.

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The Met Breuer has brought Argentine-Italian artist Lucio Fontana back on American soil with his first U.S.-based retrospective in more than 40 years. Challenging a viewer’s experience with the environment surrounding them, the Met’s exhibit “Lucio Fontana: On the Threshold” puts Fontana’s iconic paintings in a wider context with his other creations, ranging from sculpture to installations.

When Fontana comes to mind, one often thinks of his famous slashed paintings from 1958, recognized as the Cuts (Tagli). These extremely recognizable canvases feature unique slashes, which are Fontana’s symbol and are associated most significantly with the postwar era. Fontana is recognized primarily as a painter; however, through the Met Breuer’s novel exhibit, a viewer can explore Fontana’s works, ranging from starting his artistic career as a sculptor to his manipulation of environments.

Recognized as one of the most innovative artists of the 20th century, Lucio Fontana’s array of works argues against the traditional artistry of paint-to-canvas and, instead, experiments with space and environment. Max Hollein, Director of the Met, states how “Fontana radically expanded the picture plane into a third dimension. His groundbreaking approach represents a seismic moment for 20th-century art.”

It’s important to emphasize the meaning behind Fontana’s Tagli paintings; they’re not simply canvases he took a knife to. The subtext is a strong commentary on Fontana slashing through the surface of history, forcing it to open up a door to another time and spatial dimension.

As the founder of spatialism, an artistic movement created in 1947, Fontana purposefully synthesized color, sound, space, movement, and time when approaching his works.

When first entering the exhibit, a viewer enters a space solely dedicated to Fontana’s sculptures and ceramics. In the beginning of his career, Fontana focused immensely on situating sculptures and reliefs made of plaster, terracotta, and ceramics. Favoring a realist stance, Fontana created sculptures of women’s heads in detail. The first of these creations a viewer lays their eyes on is Portrait of Teresita. Crafted in 1990, this work is a mosaic sculpture of a woman. The orange hair against the stark, shiny gold material stands apart in contrast to the sculpture’s blue eyes and vivid red lips. The meticulousness Fontana exhibits in crafting this mosaic is exemplary of his strong attention to his craft and his aim towards specificity.

Following Fontana’s sculptural creations, one immediately views his most famous works, the Cuts. Considered Fontana’s most iconic works, Fontana’s radical gesture of creating a gash through a canvas was viewed as an act of sabotage to the discipline of traditional painting. When creating the Cuts, Fontana had perfected a technique: he applied paint uniformly to a canvas, and, while it was still wet, slashed the canvas with a Stanley knife. Once the paint dried, Fontana would then model the gash with his hands. Finally, Fontana made sure the slash stood in place by placing gauze to the back of the cut. One of the Cuts differing from the rest is Spatial Concept, New York 10. Created in 1962, Fontana utilizes a large sheet of copper with cuts and scratches across the polished, bronze surface. In comparison to his other Tagli works, such as Spatial Concept, Expectation created in 1968, New York 10 is one of Fontana’s works where he leaves the traditional artistic environment of paint-to-canvas behind and brings into a viewer’s space materials often used in mass-production.

After one views the Met’s immense collection of Fontana’s Tagli, a viewer finally has the chance to literally place themselves into one of Fontana’s carefully constructed environments. In the 1930s, Fontana became interested in the relationship between artists and architects. Through exploring this relationship more, Fontana discovered new technology and how he could expand a viewer’s artistic experience into the fourth dimension. Created in 1967, Fontana’s Spatial Environment in Red Light places a viewer in a labyrinth space of hallways and walls infused with red, neon light. The viewer has the chance to not just stand still in the constructed environment, but also walk through it. The saturated effect of the stark, red light blurs the walls’ definition and, ultimately, makes a viewer become a part of the environment itself. Constructed using painted wood, glass tubes, neon lights, and mixed media, Fontana provides a viewer an alternate experience to that of simply standing in front of a canvas and examining it.

The Met Breuer’s “Lucio Fontana: On The Threshold” is a not just a viewing experience, but an immersive one as well. A viewer has the chance to explore Fontana’s legacy and understand his gradual movement from sculpture to the manipulation of environments. This exhibit is on view at The Met Breuer until April 14, 2019 and is most definitely one you do not want to miss.

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Julie Curtiss at Various Small Fires

Julie Curtiss, “The Funeral”, 2018. Courtesy of the artist.

It seemed as though Julie Curtiss’s work was everywhere this year – and we are not complaining about it. In addition to Altered States, her first solo show at Various Small Fires where she is also represented, Curtiss was involved in a number of group shows on both coasts, all of the major fairs, and announced her representation by Anton Kern Gallery in November. Curtiss combines a delectable painting style with strange subject matter, creating a wonderfully seductive experience. Her show at VSF may have been her West Coast debut, but we expect to see Curtiss’s work popping up in many more arenas in the coming years.

Hugh Hayden at Lisson Gallery

Hugh Hayden: Border States, 2018, Installation view. Courtesy of the artist and Lisson Gallery.

As uninviting as they may appear, we can’t get enough of Hugh Hayden’s wooden sculptures. Hayden constructs each piece with a natural barrier of spiky thorn and branch-like elements, inviting a larger conversation of border control and America’s growing role of division. Such works were the focal point of Hayden’s solo exhibition at Lisson Gallery, Border States. In the midst of the show, Lisson announced their representation of Hayden, a move as clutch as the exhibit itself.

Ai Wei Wei at Marciano Art Foundation

Installation view of Ai Weiwei: Life Cycle, September 28, 2018–March 3, 2019, at the Marciano Art Foundation, Los Angeles. Courtesy the artist and Marciano Art Foundation. Photo by Joshua White/JWPictures.com.

Ai Wei Wei’s art as activism is perhaps needed now more than ever. His ongoing project at the Marciano Art Foundation, Life Cycle, is a sculptural response to the global refugee crisis. Wei Wei’s art has always involved political and social justice. A child refugee himself, the artist finds common ground with the current international crisis and understands the need to view refugees as inclusive to our shared humanity. Life Cycle is a testament to that.

MOCA Mural: Njideka Akunyili Crosby

Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Obodo (Country/City/Town/Ancestral Village), 2018. Courtesy of the artist and Victoria Miro, London/Venice, photo by Elon Schoenholz.

When the artwork of an artist like Njideka Akunyili Crosby is presented in the public realm, the world is better for it. Akunyili Crosby infuses her Nigerian background with her now home of America, using materials and cultural references from both histories. Her mural unveiled this year wraps the exterior of MOCA Grand Avenue, giving pedestrians and car-goers a commuting spectacle. Akunyili Crosby’s work alters the museum itself into a canvas. Texture, perspective, and scale are all explored from a unique vantage point, bringing museum-goers and by-passers alike into a rich, multi-layered experience.

Toyin Ojih Odutola at Jack Shainman

Toyin Oijh Odutola, “The Firm”, 2017-18. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery.

To say our anticipation for Toyin Oijh Odutola’s latest series of portraiture was high would be an understatement. The artist has caught our attention over recent years with her forays into storytelling and her ability to create a dynamic composition with just pastel and charcoal. When Legends Die, which spanned both of Jack Shainman’s New York locations, lived up to our expectations and gave our eyes and minds plenty to digest. Although we are sad to see this series of work come to a conclusion, we can’t imagine what Oijh Odutola will come up with next – and we are certainly here for the ride.

Hilma af Klint at The Guggenheim

Installation view, Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, October 12, 2018–April 23, 2019. Photo: David Heald.

The Guggenheim’s retrospective of Hilma af Klint is the kind of show you plan to see again and again during its run. Easily one of the most captivating shows to grace the museum’s rotunda, the work of Hilma af Klint, as the exhibition title, Paintings for the Future, suggests, is truly ahead of its time. The combination of af Klint’s biography and her awe-inspiring work brings chills down your spine. Traversing the architecture of the Guggenheim has been likened to a spiritual experience. With af Klint’s body of work, which spans nearly her entire 80-year life, the spirituality present in the building is unmistakeable. You do not want to miss this once-in-a-lifetime exhibit of one of Art history’s best kept secrets.

Friedrich Kunath at Blum & Poe

Friedrich Kunath, “It’s a Chance I’ll Have to Take”, 2018. Courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe New York.

Friedrich Kunath’s latest body of work seems to perfectly encapsulate the feelings which society at large has felt in recent years. A common understanding of solitude, fear, and pain, mixed in with moments of comic relief come to life in Kunath’s One Man’s Floor is Another Man’s Ceiling. The show leads you between the two floors of Blum & Poe’s Upper East Side space, in a dual experience that speaks for itself. Canvases of striking landscape backdrops are paired with a red balloon, an animated woodland creature, or a scribbled reminder that “it gets easier.” Kunath somehow creates works that are both jaw-dropping in their beauty and entirely relatable at the same time.

Lisa Yuskavage at David Zwirner

Lisa Yuskavage, “Golden Couple”, 2018 (detail). Courtesy of the artist and David Zwirner New York.

Lisa Yuskavage closed out the year with a two-part complimentary show spanning David Zwirner’s Chelsea and Upper East Side locations. In a stellar curated experience, one location housed a survey of numerous small works the artist has created throughout many years, the other featured new, large-scale paintings. Yuskavage’s works are mystical treats, telling stories that explode off of the canvas no matter the size. Her colors are vibrant to the point of digesting; her figures both alluring and creepy, classic and modern, beautiful and grotesque. Though she has been working in this way for decades, Yuskavage’s work feels right at home today.

The 57th Carnegie International

Alex Da Corte, “Rubber Pencil Devil”, 2018. Courtesy of the artist and Karma New York.

The oldest exhibition North American of contemporary art from around the world finds its home not in a major global art market but in Pittsburgh, PA. Only second to the Venice Biennale as the oldest international survey exhibition in the world, The Carnegie International began in 1896 and is celebrating its 57th rendition this year. In a pulsating move, the exhibition brings together the revered institution of the Carnegie Museum of Art with leading voices of the contemporary art world. Walking through the century-old building, you are greeted with the likes of Huma Bhabha, Mel Bochner, Alex Da Corte, Zoe Leonard, Kerry James Marshall, Lynette Yiadom–Boakye, and Leslie Hewitt, to name just a handful. The exhibit is a powerful statement to the burgeoning influence of art in the tumultuous times we currently find ourselves.

Punch at Jeffrey Deitch

Installation view, “Punch”, 2018. Courtesy of Jeffrey Deitch New York.

Last but certainly not least, is Jeffrey Deitch’s killer Fall 2018 group show, Punch. Bringing together some of the hottest artists influencing the DNA of today’s art world and curated by one such artist, Nina Chanel Abney, Punch was a knock-out show of modest proportions. The opening of the exhibit was a visceral testament to this energy, where you could literally feel the energy pulsating off of the crowd in an exciting, seemingly landmark occasion for the next generation of formidable artists.

Cover Image: Mel Bochner, “Here We Go Again”, 2018. Courtesy the artist and Peter Freeman, Inc., New York/Paris.

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At 80 years old, few other living artists have maintained a career as long, active and revered as David Hockney. Although his work spans many subjects and time-periods, Hockneys’ explorations into painting bind the trajectory of his nearly sixty-year career. These forays are the highlight of the first major Hockney retrospective in New York City in thirty years.

Best known for his iconic 1960s LA pool scenes, David Hockney’s exhibit at the Met provides insight into the artist’s painting processes and the many places he has worked over the years. In totality, Hockney’s body of work illustrates how he constantly pushes the limits of painting.Traversing the multi-room exhibit, viewers are greeted with works ranging from modernist abstraction, experiments with illusion and realism, to recently created jewel-toned landscapes. Hockney is also a master of color. Virtually every shade of the spectrum is utilized, treating guests’ senses to a deeply visceral experience. As different as it is daring, David Hockney’s art includes paintings, drawings, photographs and videos, illuminating the seemingly limitless reach of Hockney’s abilities.

Many pieces in the retrospective are less familiar to the public, almost unrecognizable as typical Hockney works. Guests will learn just how daring the artist already was early in his career. At a young age, Hockney proudly explored his sexuality while painting subjects of difference – a move not favored by many, including his contemporary, Andy Warhol.

Still actively painting every day, David Hockney continues to push limits. In his recent series, The Yosemite Suite, Hockney embraced new technology and created complex drawings on his iPad, perfectly capturing the breathtaking landscape of Yosemite National Park. Though a major, life-spanning retrospective at the Met would usually mark the slowing down or near-end of one’s career, David Hockney does not appear ready to take his final bow.

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By Kim Scupham

In January this year, The Hammer Museum in Los Angeles opened up the retrospective Jimmie Durham: At the Center of the World. Internationally renowned sculptor, published essayist and poet, performer, and lifelong activist for American Indian rights, Jimmie Durham is an artist of perpetual relevance.

Jimmie Durham, born in Arkansas in 1940, began work as a sculptor in 1963. He moved to Europe in 1969 to study at the L’Ecole de Beaux Arts in Geneva and formed two groups: the Draga, which endeavored to bring the arts to public life, and the Incomindios, which attempted to support Native Peoples and their struggles.  Durham returned to the US in 1974 and became a full-time organizer with the American Indian Movement (AIM). In the 1980s, he embraced art again and made his mark in New York and Mexico, and in 1994, returned to Europe. Durham’s work has been exhibited and praised worldwide.

After two decades, Durham’s curated art from the span of his artistic timeline has finally returned to the US. Fashioned semi-chronologically among the white walls of the Hammer Museum, this exhibition is a process of deep reflection dusted with good humor that no doubt mirrors Durham’s thinking mind. And many of these reflections are relevant today, given the political happenstance with immigrant status in the US and the ongoing Dakota Access Pipeline protest.

Durham’s sculpture, titled “Self Portrait” from 1986, is a confronting true-to-scale yet unreal interpretation of an American Indian that we can assume is representative of Durham himself. The head is a curious homage to how we traditionally view Native American art, colorful with braids and feathers. The penis, erect and glowing with yellow paint, also conforms to racial stereotype by which Durham comments matter-of-factly “Indian penises are unusually large and colorful” next to the feature. The body of the artwork is rife with reflective yet wistful commentary like, “I am basically light-hearted” next to a window to his heart which contains yellow feathers, “Useless nipple”, and “My skin is not really this dark, but I am sure that many Indians have coppery skin”. The collection of his words challenge convention of what is considered traditional Native American and illustrates the discordance with non-traditional Native American peoples, such as having an appendix removed hence “Appendix scar”. This forces the viewer to question their owns views and harbored stereotypes, a pertinent faculty to have living among our modern predicaments.

An activity in challenging one’s views, a humored yet thought-provoking display of a collection of rocks dot the exhibition. Three pieces come to mind. The first, a glass cabinet of petrified objects: a pizza, a block of mozzarella, salami mounted on a cutting board, a slab of bacon, even a cloud among other things, all labeled with pencil on a strip of paper as if a scientific display. But alas they are all rocks. The second piece called “Someone Stole My Diamond” from 1998 illustrates three silicon-based minerals, graphite, rose quartz, and diamond, the latter of which has been stolen with the words “at least they did not erase my graphite” in parenthesis. The value of which we place on these materials differ, and by the same token, we may value certain things that others do not. The third piece called “Obsidian arabesque” from 2009, made of obsidian rock and human hair, is a cultural reflection and proclamation to perhaps how tribes communicated in varied speech, gestures, and visuals. The rocks and hair seem to create an English sentence marked with an exclamation and a question, and the viewer tries to decipher the message but to no avail.

Durham’s sculptures are bare-boned, structural assemblages of exploration of identity. “Something…Perhaps a Fugue or an Elegy” from 2005 is perhaps the most nostalgic and thought-provoking piece, and ultimately ties in the theme of Durham’s life’s work: identity. Made up of dated electronics, like VCRs and cameras, a doll’s head, intertwined with tree branches, sea shells, wood, and other natural materials, all held together on a horizontal platform from “Start” to “Stop”, may be indicative of the confusing, life-long mess that is trying to find one’s identity, or the loss of one’s identity, and the sadness of both.

And perhaps as a commitment to Draga’s mission, Jimmie Durham: At the Center of the World is a free exhibition that I stumbled into from the streets of Los Angeles.

Installation view, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, January 29 – May 7, 2017.

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Alberto Burri’s (1915-1995) retrospective presented at the Guggenheim Museum in New York is his first American exhibition in over 35 years. Winding up the Frank Lloyd Wright building, Burri unveils a variety of his experiences through his works. The show is comprehensive and well curated. The viewer is exposed to a general understanding of the artist (exposing all ten of his various series’ made) as well as a tour-de-force of his masterpieces in one location. The Guggenheim is an ideal place to travel around the world of Alberto Burri.

The artist is best recognized for his Sacchi (sacks) series made of sown pieces of burlap bags, often with parts of old cloth added. However, it becomes quickly evident that his other series’ are just as strong and deserve equal recognition. Catrami (tars), Muffe (molds), Gobbi (hunchbacks), Bianchi (white), Legni (woods), Ferri (irons), Combustini Plastiche (plastic combustions) Cretti and Cellotex works all display tactile examples of the artist’s clear vision and recognizable style regardless of medium. The exhibition displays his earliest works from the postwar period made in the late 1940’s up until his latest ones from the 1990’s. Furthermore, on the top floor of this magnificent spiraling exhibition is a video installation of his architectural sculpture Cretto.

Burri began this project in the city of Gibellina in Sicily during the 1980’s in response to an earthquake that devastated the locale in 1968. Juxtaposing his Cretti work next to this video was quite appropriate. One can see the relation of these craquelure paintings with his memorial/land art Grande Cretto. The paintings were made by mixing resin with pigments and polyvinyl acetate to create an effect of destructing paint or dried up desert lake. For his project in Gibellina (invited by the mayor) “Burri instead envisioned an architectural sculpture that would cover the ruins and represent both the seismic disaster and the destroyed urban plan.” (exhibition notes). He transformed the city’s ruins into a monumental white cemented surface – Cretto. Burri refers to his Cretti paintings (1970’s) as “the energy of the surface” and his final work, Cretto is amomento mori (a dead moment). It maintains the energy of the destruction from the earthquake.

Although the show was curated chronologically, the viewer has the option early on to detour into a side room and get lost in a web of perpetual combustion. As Burri calls them, paintings combustion puts forth a magnificent experience for the viewer to absorb and reflect what is to come. In that first room three paintings from the Combustini Plastiche (plastic combustions) series are impressively displayed. His process of burning and melting plastic resembles colorless monochrome canvases. The distinction between front and back, inside and out, solid or empty space can be confused.

Through this exhibition one can clearly understand why Burri was seen as a father figure to Arte Povera – bridging the gap between art and life, nature and culture. This movement emerged in Italy in the 1960’s. The term Arte Povera was defined from curator and art critic Germano Celant in 1967. The use of commonplace, and “poor” materials are expressions of this movement. For Burri, wood, steel, plastic, and burlap sacks are all predominant mediums. Wood combustion is visible in Combustione Legno (1957), in Ferro SP iron is the material used (1961), Sacking in Red fuses sacking with vivid red pigment (1954) and red plastic in Rosso Plastca (1961). These examples reflect the nature of Arte Povera.

World War II had a devastating and momentous effect on the whole world during this time. Burri was clearly no different. A physician during the war, Burri resolved to painting as an outlet for past trauma. His work seemingly reflects these experiences. His art reveals a nuanced pattern of pieces creating a whole. Some of his work repairs while others seem to separate. All of his works are incredibly tactile. With his various techniques of burning, sowing, stitching, tearing, or layering, Burri questions and challenges the conventional notion of painting. One immediately notices his palette of colors; rust or red resembles the earth or blood from war, brown like the dirt or black as the tar on the streets. We live in a rough unforgiving world and his color, medium selections and processes reflect this reality.

The artist was named the “artist of wombs”. This label may have an initial reaction or feeling of repulsion towards his work. However, as one takes time observing and absorbing his pictures, one may feel drawn by the work and skills involved. In the pursuit of understanding through art, Burri contributes through bringing awareness and highlighting certain events or elements of importance that can speak to each individual in its own way. Perhaps revisiting the exhibition will reveal more depth to his work. There is a sense of realization and consciousness in his work.

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