Thursday, March 13: Self-Taught Artists at Hirschl & Adler

Self-Taught Artists at the Crossroads of Fact and Fiction brings together works that explore the fluidity of truth and imagination, celebrating the unique ways in which these artists craft their own realities through art. Each piece in the exhibition offers a fresh, intimate view of the world, blending fact, myth, and fantasy into a captivating visual dialogue. Above: James Castle, Untitled (Coat Drawing), n.d. Soot and saliva on matchbook cover, 5 x 7 1/4 inches

The exhibition features works by a distinguished group of self-taught artists, including Bill Traylor, James Castle, Willard Watson (The Texas Kid), Purvis Young, Lonnie Holley, Jeanne Brousseau , and James Edward Deeds. This compelling show offers a unique exploration of the intersection between reality and imagination, where the distinctions between truth and fiction blur, creating deeply personal and thought-provoking narratives.

The exhibition showcases the diverse visions and creative expressions of artists who, without formal training, developed innovative approaches to artmaking, often infused with personal histories, memories, and cultural storytelling. Their works span a range of media, from drawing and painting to sculpture, and represent a wide spectrum of emotional intensity, from the raw energy of Bill Traylor’s vivid imagery to the meditative abstraction of Lonnie Holley’s intricate, hand-crafted sculptures. Above: Jeanne Brousseau, Bedtime Story, 2023

A ey highlight of the exhibition is the debut of contemporary artist George Widener with Hirschl & Adler Modern. Widener, known for his meticulous works that merge mathematical precision with artistic expression, introduces new pieces that challenge conventional thinking and expand the boundaries of visual culture. Above, One of many calendar paintings by George Widener, courtesy of The Boxer Gallery

Hirschl & Adler, 41 East 57^th Street, New York, NY Info

Thursday, March 13, 6:00-8:30pm: Viktor Koen | Artist talk at SVA

In conjunction with his solo show Greetings from Pandemic Island, currently on view at the SVA Flatiron Project Space, Viktor Koen, chair of BFA Comics and BFA Illustration, is giving an artist talk about the origins of this project, which  evolved into a pictorial bridge between the 1918–19 influenza and COVID-19 pandemics. Spanning a turbulent century, the series documents the brutal realities of such crises by questioning issues of personal and collective responsibility, humanity, and gross indifference but also highlights an intricate web of long-existing layers of racial and socioeconomic disparities catalyzed by the epidemic.

Utilizing a wide range of archival photography, turn-of-the-century advertising, and public service propaganda, this visual essay functions as a vivid reminder of viral global experiences still unfolding through mass and social media on our devices. But mostly, about the obsessive urgency to simply make something and stay mentally afloat when everything around was sinking. 

SVA Graduate Center, 136 West 21st Street New York, NY Registration required

Friday, March 14, 5-7pm: Danielle Orchard and Aristide Maillol at Lévy Gorvy Dayan

Lévy Gorvy Dayan presents an exhibition of new paintings by Danielle Orchard (b. 1985) in conversation with sculptures by Aristide Maillol (1861–1944),. Staging a dialogue between painting and sculpture that is beyond time, the exhibition will represent visions of form, volume, and line explored through the female figure. Above: Danielle Orchard. Day Bed, 2023

Nodding to the great painters of the modern era including Picasso and Matisse, Orchard’s paintings often reference their styles and subject by portraying female nudes in a more abstract manner; the figures are portrayed in multi-perspectival Analytic Cubist style or abbreviated otherwise into solid contours and saturated colors. As she tackles depiction plane by plane, or each abstract part that she sculpts with thick impasto, Orchard is exploring the female corporeal representation. 

In narratives ranging from art historical tropes to contemporary leisure activities, the viewers can expect to find scenes of familiarity in Orchard’s work. As the backgrounds or accompanying objects echo the body language of the women, depicted with muted emotions, the artist invites the viewers to empathize and contemplate on the interiority of the models. Above: Aristide Maillol. Petite Montagne (1er état), conceived 1936–37, cast in 2014

 While the concept of female nude finds itself deeply ingrained in art history as a muse and more recently being established as a subject of study, Orchard adds depth by infusing her own experiences as a female artist, having trained, posed, and even taught in life drawing classes. Pairing Orchard’s painted scenes with a group of sculptures by Aristide Maillol 1861–1944) offers viewers a rare opportunity to experience ways in which the gaze can shift and, perhaps, settle in a more universal appreciation of the female body.

Lévy Gorvy Dayan, 19 East 64^th Street, New York, NY Info

Continuing: Diana Horowitz | Light Is A Place at Bookstein Projects

This exhibition features approximately thirty small paintings executed by the artist over the last four years. The paintings are all created on-site, often translating vast spaces to sizes spanning a few inches in each direction (6 x 6 inches, 5 x 7 inches).  

The locations range from the 100th floor of a Manhattan skyscraper, to the saltmarshes of Cape Cod, to the high plains of Wyoming, to the hilltop towns in Italy. But whatever her subject, the artist is able to distill a quiet, often ethereal, moment in time. The dynamic effects she captures – fireworks reflections gleaming off the waters of Lago Bracciano, the sun filtering through the morning fog, or the ebbing tides of the Atlantic – are subtle, resulting in paintings both nuanced and carefully balanced. Indeed, Horowitz’s soft geometry, keen sense of color and innate sense of light work together harmoniously in these small and impactful works. 

In Painters on Painting, Xico Greenwald writes “Whether depicting newly constructed high-rise condos, low-income housing developments in the outer boroughs, or a picturesque European village at the foot of the Alps, Horowitz’s diminutive landscapes at Bookstein Projects offer up big-time visual pleasure. Refreshingly, she adjusts her painterly approach with each change of scenery, alternating her surfaces between linen, Masonite and aluminum, while also changing up her paint handling, scale, layout and color palette from picture to picture. Here the artist’s eye and hand are alive to the scene before her, translating her visual sensations into softly applied strokes of carefully calibrated colors that seem to sing together. The pictures here buzz with life as Horowitz finds painterly solutions to represent what she sees and feels.”

Bookstein Projects, 39 East 78^th Street, New York, NY Info 

Continuing: Beatriz Milhazes | Rigor and Beauty at the Guggenheim

This new exhibition features works by Beatriz Milhazes (b. 1960, Rio de Janeiro), who engages with her Brazilian cultural heritage and identity through the language of abstraction. The artist’s complex body of work spans four decades—from the 1980s to the present—and encompasses sculpture, collage, print, textiles, public art, and especially painting. This focused exhibition features a group of fifteen paintings and works on paper from 1995 to 2023, draw inspiration from the opulence of 18th-century Brazilian Baroque colonial churches and ornamental garments. Milhazes synthesizes these influences into abstract and representative motifs, with circles and arabesques, delicate crochet and lace, flowers and floral patterns, and ornate pearls and ironwork emerging throughout her compositions.

In 1989 Milhazes developed an innovative technique she calls “monotransfer,” inspired by the monotype printing process, in which a painted image is transferred from a plate to paper, producing a mirror image. She begins her process by painting motifs onto clear plastic sheets with acrylic paint. Once the acrylic dries, she layers and adheres the painted films to canvas and then peels away the plastic, revealing the forms in reverse. The resulting compositions are vibrant and dynamic, combining abstract forms, organic patterns, and geometric structures on textured surfaces imbued with the memory of the artist’s actions.

Milhazes’s recent paintings, including Mistura sagrada (Sacred Mixture, 2022), mark a shift toward exploring the spiritual power of nature in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although references to the natural world have been present since her early career, here she delves into cycles of renewal—life and death—through colorful, angular forms and intricate patterns.

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1071Fifth Avenue, New York, NY Info Note: Enjoy discounted admission of $16 through April 17 as we prepare our iconic rotunda gallery for Rashid Johnson: A Poem for Deep Thinkers. Get a peek at the coming exhibition and explore works from the collection in Beatriz Milhazes: Rigor and Beauty, By Way Of, and Piet Mondrian: Ever Further, as well as the ongoing presentation of works by Picasso, Degas, Van Gogh, and more. Now is also a perfect time to join a free daily architecture tour. 

Wednesday, March 10-Sunday, March 23: The Affordable Art Fair at Metropolitan Pavilion

Affordable Art Fair NYC will return to the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea next week with thousands of contemporary artworks from local, national and international galleries. AFF will once again partner with Arts Gowanus to present Unsound Methodologies by Gil Kuno. Kuno is a Gowanus-based artist who has been challenging the boundaries of various media since the introduction of the Internet. Kuno’s work is often reminiscent of the organic and social processes that surround us, yet they exceed the familiarity we often associate them with. Through experiments in the audio-visual and re-envisioning experiences common within everyday life, Gil aims to push people away from paradigmatic thinking. He takes a whimsical approach in subverting common perceptions of reality.  Above: photo courtesy of Hyperallergic

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Over the course of the fair, Affordable Art Fair NYC visitors are invited choose a colored tile that resonates with them, reflect on the emotion it evokes, and write their feeling on the tile. Then, place the tile over a template of the city skyline. Together with The Art Therapy Project, participants will bring the NYC skyline to life as a colorful mosaic. The Art Therapy Project is a nonprofit providing group art therapy in a safe inclusive space for people in need of mental health services. Clients feel connected and inspired while exploring their personal journeys, increasing self-awareness, and improving their quality of life.

Dedicated to presenting affordable art that everyone can discover and collect, Affordable Art Fair NYC is excited to showcase a collection of works priced under $1,000. A longstanding and much-loved feature, the Wonders Under $1,000 wall is the perfect place to start out your fair journey and an excellent tool for the emerging collector. For information about all AAF programs, please go here

Metropolitan Pavilion, West 18th Street, New York, NY Info