John Biggers: My America
Artist John Biggers (1924-2001) created paintings, drawings, sculptures, and mural of historical and emotional merit. Yet his contribution to American art when largely unrecognized, and only now is he having his first solo exhibition in New York at the Michael Rosenfeld Gallery.
Mil Besos
Ruven Afanador: Mil Besos - Throckmorton Fine Art
Flamenco dancers peak in their careers when classical dancers are stepping down because it's believed that only life-worn women have the experience needed to convey the complex emotions required by the dance. Photographer Ruven Afanador has dressed his models in extreme costumes, all black, and imitated the bold black and white makeup reminiscent of classic Greek tragedies. To enhance the graphic effect further, he has photographed the women in the stark, sunlit Andalusian wilderness. The simplicity of the set allows us to focus entirely on the dancer's faces and bodies as they enact the dramatic narratives these ancient dances describe.
Walk the Line
Su-Mei Tse Proposition de Détour, 2006, Peter Blum Gallery.
Applying the minimalist tradition of using industrial materials, Su-Mei Tse acquired a large wool carpet, had it professionally printed, and then cut it into the shape of a maze. The colorful rug, titled Proposition de Detour, measures nine meters (nearly 30 feet) in diameter and is the only object on display in the expansive, white Peter Blum Gallery.
The maze is a copy of an inlaid design found at the 12th century Chartres Cathedral in France. Historians suspect the maze warned parishioners about the entanglements of sin or as a mini-pilgrimage. The rug's print is from a 16th-century Persian carpet, which features stylized animals, birds, and plants found in images of paradise.
Born to a British mother and a Chinese father, Tse is accustomed to bridging cultures. By merging contrasting visual ideas of salvation, Tse has created a subtle meditation on the complexities of cultural relationships.
Default State Network
What is consciousness? Religion, philosophy, even science can’t give us an exact definition. ayet this is the question posed by curator Ryan Wallace in his group show Default State Network, now on at Morgan Lehman Gallery.