Simon Linke Warhol, 2004. Courtesy Mireille Mosler Ltd.

(from the press release)  No one seems to be sure what the decline of modernism’s cultural influence, beginning sometime in the 1950’s and 60’s, has led to. The return of narrative and ornament in the art and architecture of the 1970’s suggested an effort to break with the immediate past, but the privileging of rationalism as a guiding social order evident in the idea of markets finding their perfect equilibrium continues to dominate economic discourse, despite the occasionally irrational results. While architects like Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, and Rem Koolhaas seemed to have represented “a new way forward,” the prevalence of a creeping re-modernism found in the ubiquitous Corbusier-like, double-height urban lofts sheathed in glass and filled with mid-century modern furniture confirms the continued appeal of modernism’s aesthetic essentialism. Continue Reading More »

Ann Marshall, Beige, 2011. Courtesy Subliminal Projects

The classical figure has been admired throughout history and mastering the depiction of the human figure has long been considered the cornerstone of artistic practice. To perfect their representation of human anatomy, musculature, and proportion, artists throughout the ages turned to ancient Greek and Roman sculpture. By imitating ancient precedents, the Old Masters of art developed a classical figural type that remained the predominant mode of representation for centuries. Following, the 16th and 17th centuries of the Renaissance took the classical figure to a higher level through the use of perspective, the study of human anatomy and proportion, and through their development of an unprecedented refinement in drawing and painting techniques. In the present day, these leading contemporary artists have a heightened ability to understand and interpret their subject, while emphasizing the mind-set and methodologies that have guided artists for over five hundred years. Their figures are influenced by characteristics of today- feelings, surroundings, beliefs, and relationships, incorporated with new techniques and mediums, while still holding true the fundamentals of the classical form, thus becoming the New Masters.

The New Masters exhibition focuses on today’s leading contemporary artists and their approach to the classical figure with works by Mary Jane Ansell, Sean Cheetham, Ron English, Benjamin Bryce Kelley, Miles ‘Mac’ MacGregor, Ann Marshall, Stephen Wright, and Jonathan Yeo.

“New Masters” On view May 7, through June 4, 2011

Subliminal Projects

Updates on Ai Wei Wei’s situation on http://freeaiweiwei.org

Tom Fruin "Necktie Party" Hand bent neon tubes, electrical wire, hardware

165 ORCHARD STREET

April 1st, 6 to 10PM

Signs of the Times
April 1st – May 5th

Friends at Graphite Gallery in Williamsburg have organized a silent film and auction event with works donated from more than 28 artists!  All proceeds from this event will be donated to a non-profit organization, JHelp, which is dedicated to helping earthquake and tsunami victims in Japan. Currently they are working to bring food, clothing, blankets, water, etc. to the people in the Tohoku region where the tsunami hit hardest.

Artists include: Phoenix, Matthew Waldman, Ryan McGinness, Kenzo Minami, José Parla, Tomokazu Matsuyama, Lady Aiko, Kenji Hirata, Rostarr, Sebastien Agneessens, Motomichi Nakamura, Tomoko Sugimoto, Katja Holtz, Junko Shimizu, Patrick Bradley, Austin Power, Hiroki Otsuka, Shigeko Okada, Keiko Tokushima, Yoko Furusho, Lisa Alisa, Max Steiner, Terrance Hughes, Hazuki Aikawa, Begonia Colomar, Masa Kawamura, Akane Kodani and more.

Graphite NY Gallery
38 Marcy Ave, Brooklyn

March 31, 2011
Thursday, 6-10PM

Beginning March 29, The Bruce High Quality Foundation will take to the streets (and highways) on a five-week, 11-city, coast-to-coast road trip that crosses state lines and institutional boundaries to inspire and enable local art students to define the future of their own educational experience.

Traveling in a limousine painted as a school bus, BHQF will visit university art departments, art schools, art institutions, and alternative spaces across the nation, bringing together concerned educators, artists, arts administrators, and—most importantly—students to brainstorm on the future of art schools. What are they for? How should they be organized? If not for careers, what is the essence of art itself? These fundamental questions have long haunted artists, and the BHQF are interested in putting the questions back in the hands of students across America.

BHQF will kick off the trip on March 29 from 6:30–8:00pm at the Cooper Union in New York, and continue on to institutions in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Minneapolis, Detroit, Denver, Santa Fe, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Portland.

More information here.