Hey Art Lovers!
Today I want to bring you a new selection of great exhibitions and gallery shows on view in New York!
This seasons started with very bright openings in galleries across the city (see my previous posts, and here, and here), and I can't even squeeze all of my favorites shows in one post!
Keep in mind that this is my personal selection, based on my tastes and rather amateur knowledge in contemporary art 💁🏼🎨
Let me start with the star...
Oscar Murillo at David Zwirner
Oscar Murillo is one of the most promising emerging artists, or I should not even call him emerging any more - his popularity has spiked in the last few years and prices of his works skyrocketed!
And this is by far not the only reason to see the show :)
The artist uses different media in his art - paintings, film, installations, sculptures.. And all of them share with us his cultural experience of being born in Colombia, living in London and travelling around the world 🌎
While his maze-like installation of dark canvases and textiles on metal elements was a bit too depressing to me, I totally loved his new abstract paintings!
The combination of brushwork and printing, words and faces makes you wanna stare at it searching for every little detail...
Alexi Torres at UNIX
Honestly speaking, I have not heard about this artist before this show, though it's his second NYC exhibition.
In this show Torres paints modern Cuban life, his friends and neighbors from a village in a suburbs of Havana... In a totally mesmerizing way!
I fell in love with the technique that he uses in painting these faces - light white brushstrokes over black and white photos bring these portraits an amazing feeling of air and freedom.
Actually the artist himself has always been concerned with freedom and democracy around the world and trying to send his messages through the look in the eyes of these people...
"I could see an innocence and vulnerability behind their eyes" / Alexi Torres
Joan Semmel at Alexander Gray Associates
In this rather provocative show Joan Semmel explores the theme of aging of her own body.
I wouldn't say the topic is the one many of us would expect to inspire the artists, but these paintings are not only very open and honest, but also truly beautiful.
The naked female body is juxtaposed with silhouettes and shadows, giving these paintings a feeling of movement and life, at the same time bringing a subtle sense of intimacy.
Fearless and yet seemingly shy Joan Semmel is showing us that getting older is totally natural and that there is harmony and beauty in every shape and line of a female body...
Xu Zhen at James Cohan
I liked the new works of the well known Chinese artist Xu Zhen, especially the series of those sweetly pink abstract paintings.
The thick layers of paint (impasto) are giving them these candy-cupcake shapes, making the works so attractive that you want to bite it!:)** 🍭
Actually the artist is using the real cake decorator to shape the oil in canvas, what makes these "cream" elements so real.
This will be enough for today!
I hope you have time to check out these shows in NYC - most of them are open until the mid or late October (check on the galleries' websites).
In my next post I will share with you other great shows of this fall (one of them is probably the most colorful art experience you ever had!)
And I will share some pictures of the works that we are likely not going to see again in the nearest future...
Stay tuned!
🙌