My Soul’s Urge

It was a gallery-hopping weekend. Only the closing of the Monet would prompt me to leave my A.C. and see what was a wonderful exhibition.

Is someone considered a fine art photographer because they take their camera and point it at clouds, birds, ice, et cetera, and then click? Unless there is artistry brought to the photo by it’s composition, digital manipulation, concept or the presentation itself, in my opinion it’s documentary photograph.

With the latter thought in mind, the Yossi Milo Gallery is presenting “Retratos Pintados,” hand-painted photographic portraits collected from Brazil by Titus Reidl, a European historian. The painted vernaculars were popular from the late 19^th to early 20^th century in family homes in northeastern Brazil; this was before the introduction of color photography.

At first it struck me as odd that a collector was showing work not created by him at a gallery. I realized that the organization of the pieces was a main component in the artistry and aesthetics of the exhibition; the photos were framed and hung in clusters, reflecting the style in which they would have been traditionally presented in suburban Brazilian family homes.

As a fan of Anna Gaskell, I made sure to visit her exhibition this weekend at Yvon Lambert. The exhibition, “Turns Gravity,” featured various new photographs by Gaskell. I enjoyed the sense of mystery that Gaskell embeds in her photographs; they are intriguing and always keep the viewer wanting more.

Being a painter myself, Ragnar Kjartansson’s exhibition at Luhring Augustine was one I found truly compelling. Through the years, his technique and subject never change, which interests me.

Trine Sendergaard’s “Strude,” at the Bruce Silverstein gallery offered some captivating images. The Danish artist displayed a collection of photographs that displayed woman wearing traditional Danish mask-like garments, called strude (which is the inspiration for exhibition’s title), that were worn to cover their faces from the wind, sun and sand.

At the Casey Kaplan Gallery, Trisha Donnelly exhibited about 20 different sculptures. Donnelly is known for her usage of various mediums, which was evident in the abstract sculptures she displayed that ranged from wood, limestone, and photography. I was fascinated by the piece below, not only by its abstractive aesthetic, but its unique presentation as Donnelly displayed it with sound.

German native photographer, Julian Faulhaber, displayed various photographs at the Hasted Hunt Gallery titled LOWDESITYPOLYETHYLENE II. His photographs depicted various newly constructed sites with bright artificial lighting. The long exposure time resulted in images that appeared abstract and unreal. Additionally, I think that the composition of his photograph had a very architectural resonance.

The Andrea Rosen Gallery exhibited works of two very talented contemporary young artists, Nate Lowman, and Karla Black. Lowan’s and Black’s disparate forms of expression presented a contrasting yet harmonic dialogue between their works, essentially accentuating their common use of repetition to generate meanings of culture and language through art.

The Roy Lichtenstein exhibition, one of Pop Art’s most influential artists included some ofLichtenstein most prominent themes; fruits, vases, and flowers. On display also were some of his wonderful sculptures, an excellent reflection of his painting in a 3D form.

I find it fascinating that, even decades after his death, Lichtenstein’s work still looks fresh. Which brings to mind David Salle’s exhibition at the Marry Boone Gallery. It is evident that even the works that Salle did in the 80’s still looks recent and one can see his influence on the work of emerging artists.

Happy 4^th of July everyone!