Steven Assael's New Drawings at Forum Gallery, NYC

Steven Assael is a very well liked teacher at School of Visual Arts and New York Academy of Art and an accomplished artist. He is currently showing a number of new drawings at Forum Gallery, and they are beautiful.  The exhibition runs from November 21, 2013 until February 1, 2014.  The gallery is a bit hard to find, on 5th Ave in the building across from Trump Tower, on the 2nd floor. Definitely worth the trip!

Martha Erlebacher, Yoyoi Kusama and more

Now is a great time to check out art shows in NYC.  I got lots of recommendations, so here we go:

Martha Erlebacker Retrospective is still on display at New York Academy of Art until November 24th.  Martha Erlebecker was 'a contemporary master of representational art and a formidable educator'.  Her work inspired many generations of figurative artists, and the show is a must see!

Yoyoi Kusama is exhibiting at David Zwirner in Chelsea.  'The centerpiece is Kusama's newest mirrored infinity room [...] it features a shallow reflecting pool as it's floor and hundreds of multicolored LED lights.' There is a line at the entrance, so go early. 

Gallery Henoch  presents works by seven contemporary painters titled 'The City'.  Some of the artists included are Sharon Sprung, Alexandra Pacula and Max Ferguson. Go see it, if you like representational art, inspired by New York City.

Tony Scherman's 'fictional portraiture' is on display at Winston Wachter Fine Art.  His works are 'renowned for his encaustic technique', and this show is centered around Shakespeare's Hamlet.  See it if you like unique portraiture with a modern twist.

So many more shows to talk about and not enough time!

Here are some pics from current exhibitions,

Yayoi Kusama

Yayoi Kusama

Martha Erlebacher

Martha Erlebacher

Arcadia Contemporary opens its doors

If you love the contemporary representational art scene, you must check out Arcadia Gallery in Soho NYC.  The gallery reopened on Sept 19th, after undergoing renovations during the summer under its new name: Arcadia Contemporary.  To my relief many of the same artists still show there, such as Casey Baugh, and Jeremy Lipking.  Here are some pics from the opening reception of their new Small Works exhibition (currently on view), and links for more info.  Enjoy!

Arcadia's website: http://arcadiafinearts.com/

Check out this blog for more information regarding the changes that went on over the summer at Arcadia:
http://underpaintings.blogspot.com/2013/09/arcadia-gallery-redefining-contemporary.html

New York Academy of Art Summer Exhibition at Allegra Laviola Gallery

Today is the last day of the New York Academy of Art' Seventh Annual Summer Exhibition, taking place at Allegra Laviola Gallery, on the Lower East Side.  The show provides a good overview of the school's artistic community, exhibiting work by students, alumni, and faculty members.  Each artist brings a unique style to the table, from traditional realism, to abstract modern art.  The variety is refreshing, it gives charm and character to the show, and makes it accessible to a wide audience.  Definitely a must see!

View of the exhibition

A group of artworks

Dina Brodsky Gone, 2013 Painting, oil on plexiglass 7” diameter

Dik F. Liu Three Metal Containers, 2012 Painting, oil on panel 12 x 12”

Peter Drake Three Nurses, 2012 Painting, acrylic on canvas (also includes 2:07 minute video) 26 x 36”

More paintings hanging in the show

PATRICIA WATWOOD at DACIA Gallery

I recently stopped by Dacia Gallery, in NYC, to see the works of Patricia Watwood.  Her show titled 'Venus Apocalypse' is comprised of  a dozen paintings and drawings in which "the artist places female nudes within dystopian urban landscapes." You can read more about the show's concept here. Her work is innovative and skillfully executed.  The viewer will be surprised I think, as I was, by the interesting juxtaposition of contemporary themes, and props (see frame below) and classical subjects (Venus, Fallen Angels).  Check it out if you are in the area!

Two great exhibitions at the Brooklyn Museum of Art

Yesterday I visited the Brooklyn Museum of Art for the first time, drawn in by the Fine Lines: American Drawings exhibition.  There are only two more weeks left to see this wonderful collection of "over 100 [...] drawings and sketchbooks from the Museum’s world-renowned collection of American art." They range from quick figure sketches, to more developed landscape studies, to very accurate anatomical drawings (see images below).  Another very popular exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum is the John Singer Sargent Watercolors.  Here you will find also close to 100 pieces, some oil paintings, but mostly watercolors.  The surprising element in this exhibition is the instructional side of it, with videos and installations explaining watercolor painting techniques, and an in depth analysis of how these techniques were used by Sargent.  This exhibition runs until July 28, so there is plenty of time to see it.  Enjoy!

Adrian Ghenie at Pace Gallery -New Paintings

Adrian Ghenie is a well known Romanian artist, who lives and works in Cluj and in Berlin.  New Paintings is his first U.S. gallery exhibition and it features a group of paintings from his "Pie Fight" series.  In them, he combines episodes of Nazi history with the slapstick trope of a pie fight, "the thick impasto of paint serving as the filling that obscures the subject's face."  Here are some pictures from the show.  Enjoy!