contemporary art – Page 25

November 18, 2024December 7, 2024, by Will Kaplan

Aggregate at Studio 9D

Installation view of Bradley Milligan’s *Scrimmage*, 2023, tinted joint compound, scrap wood, used drop cloth, oil on panel, cotton thread, hardware. 79 x 49 x 51 inches; *Down the River*, tinted joint compound, scrap wood, automotive polish, hardware. 85 x 71 x 5 inches

In the three person show Aggregate at Studio 9D, artists Sammy Bennett, Bradley Milligan, and James Bertucci channel New York streetscapes and detritus to relay an earnest and affecting impression of the city. Bertucci’s trompe l’oeil paintings, Bennett’s fabric installation, and Milligan’s rugged sculptures overlap in a reverence for craftsmanship. Labor and construction are this show’s subject and, in many ways, its medium. In its use of material and representation Aggregate is boldly literal in its translation of the city’s chaos and beauty.

November 14, 2024December 10, 2024, by Eva Zanardi

Fiat Lux: Matthew Lusk Illuminates Newburgh with his solo show at Elijah Wheat Showroom

*Encyclopedia of Light (Today in Two Parts) at Elijah Wheat Showroom, installation view*

On March 31, 1884, the Village of Newburgh became New York’s second municipality to receive electricity, just two years after New York City. On September 14, 2024, Matthew Lusk achieved a similarly electrifying milestone by launching his solo show, Encyclopedia of Light (Today in Two Parts), an outstanding exhibition running through December 1 at Elijah Wheat Showroom in Newburgh, NY.

November 13, 2024December 10, 2024, by Bat-Ami Rivlin

Erica Stoller: Find and Form

in dialogue

Outcropping, Erica Stoller’s recent solo show at A.I.R. Gallery, which ran through November 10th, utilized cardboard cuttings, formerly boxes, and packaging, as its exclusive material. When walking through the gallery, one noticed the show has three sections– a corner piece that covers two walls, floor to ceiling, a grid of individual cardboard compositions hung on the wall and a third “sandwiches” station that allowed viewers to pick up layered cardboard batches. Proceeds from the sale of the “sandwiches” go to Feeding America. An interesting survey of installation art—a site-specific installation, painting-like works on a wall, and an interactive piece. Stoller often works with space in curious ways. In Item # 25-033, her 2022 solo show at A.I.R. Gallery, she created a single wall-to-wall installation using Manilla rope and elastic bands. The rope cut through the gallery space, creating framed planes between ceiling pipes, wall hooks, and the floor.

November 12, 2024November 12, 2024, by Etty Yaniv

Running Line: Noga Yudkovik Etzioni at FORMah Gallery

A group of wooden objects on a white floor

Description automatically generated — Noga Yudkovik-Etzioni, Running Line, detail

In Running Line, on view at FORMah gallery, objects stripped of function take on new roles: charged, amorphous, and poetic. Israeli artist Noga Yudkovik-Etzioni creates a space where memory, material, and form converge through elongated installations on the floor and a series of small wall-mounted paper-based reliefs

November 11, 2024November 12, 2024, by Andrew Fish

Art Spiel Picks: Boston Exhibitions in November 2024

Highlights

Hugh Hayden: Home Work at Rose Art Museum, Waltham, MA.

In the aftermath of the Presidential election, I feel inspired to visit galleries and museums more than ever. Not only am I feeling a conviction to support these now-endangered organizations, but I am finding respite in their halls and holdings. Regardless of your political leanings, this is a tender time for artists and art institutions, as well as for the curators and Directors who organize exhibitions. Obviously, what’s on view this month was curated before Election Day, but now that we’re in a new world, all of it seems singed by the results and potently relevant for the time. Hugh Hayden’s exploration of public education reminds us that the Department of Education may be gutted, and J Rowen O’Dwyer’s portraits of Trans people show us a vulnerable population that’s now even more susceptible to the threats of an angry and fearful nation. It’s a sobering time, but one that calls for art and artists to persevere.

November 6, 2024December 7, 2024, by Amalia Rizos

Elizabeth Insogna: Exquisite Traces at Anne Reid ‘72 Gallery

Elizabeth Insogna, *Veil,* 2024, Glazed ceramic, 15×15”

Large-scale, multi-piece sculptures standing balanced by their own weight accompany ceramic tablets colored cream and periwinkle, which hang along the walls of Anne Reid ‘72 Gallery, echoing in their sudden coalition the deeds of a goddess from centuries ago. Hekate is her name, and she is a Greek goddess associated with fire, witchcraft, and transformation. In our search for the spiritual, returning to the philosophies of ancient times lends fresh wisdom, lighting compelling paths forward.

November 5, 2024November 5, 2024, by Art Spiel

Devon Gordon: OBSESSED at Zepster

featured project

Installation shot: Paul-Sebastian Japaz, Inés Maestre, Lanyi Gao. Photo courtesy of Tyler Ward.

OBSESSED, the group exhibition Shelby Nelson Ward curated at Zepster in Bushwick, Brooklyn, is inspired by Mariah Carey’s hit song Obsessed and the developmental impact of social media on the millennial generation. This exhibition explores how contemporary culture influences our understanding of self-worth and authenticity. Devon Gordon, the gallery founder gives us an insight into the venue and the current show, which runs through November 17th, 2024.

November 4, 2024November 19, 2024, by Etty Yaniv

Donna Conklin King: Fifty-Eight Feet Down the Ocean

Hot Air

“Bubbly Barnacles” after launch photo, courtesy of UMAFL

Sculptor Donna Conklin King draws on the philosophy of Kintsugi, the centuries-old Japanese art that highlights an object’s imperfections by emphasizing its cracks with gold leaf. She works primarily with concrete, experimenting by casting forms from unconventional materials such as tin ceiling tiles, food containers, and fabric. Her sculptures often incorporate delicate elements like doilies and 24-karat gold leaf, exploring the relationship between nature, architecture, and the inevitable decay of civilization. In her recent focus on public sculptures, Conklin King’s pieces are “openly cracked and repaired,” evolving and enduring over time. They reflect themes of resilience, history, and archaeology.

October 30, 2024November 19, 2024, by Eva Zanardi

All you need is JUST LOVE: Michela Martello at Pen + Brush

*JUST LOVE*, (Mimi), 2024, Acrylic, pigments, ink, pastel on interfacing, Installation view

In the heart of Manhattan’s Flatiron district, Pen + Brush, a 130-year-old nonprofit dedicated to championing women in the arts, proudly presents JUST LOVE, an immersive, large-scale installation and exhibition by Italian-born Brooklynite Michela Martello. Drawing inspiration from the renowned Japanese writer Haruki Murakami, Martello’s 360-degree visual experience invites viewers to embark on an introspective and exhilarating journey, exploring the blurred boundaries between reality and the imagined. The narrative woven throughout the exhibition transports viewers into mythical domains, where the sacred and the fantastical coalesce seamlessly.

October 28, 2024November 19, 2024, by Yasmeen Abdallah

Art Spiel Picks: New York City Exhibitions in October, 2024

HIGHLIGHTS

The *Object Library*, photo courtesy of Yasmeen Abdallah

Mementos abound all around us in our day-to-day activities. Often, they hold dear memories: some we wish to keep, and some we wish to release so that we can move on to new experiences. Be it a trinket that houses memories of better days, a gift from someone we cherish, or a serendipitous discovery that found its way into our orbit, we become fused in inexplicable ways. What happens then, when we are asked or forced to part with such gifts? It can be freeing to release ourselves from materialism, but it can also be devastating, depending on the circumstances.