Notes on a few shows I saw in Chelsea that may have gotten lost in the shuffle
Taca Sui at Chambers Fine Art until April 19th.
This show of understated black and white photography has to fight for attention with David “High Noon with Gagosian” Zwirner across the road doing Thomas Ruff at 6 foot by 4 foot photos of the moon. These images are haunting and peaceful. They refer to the Book of Odes, a millennia old book of poems that he used as a jumping off point for the project.
Taca Sui imbues these images with a timeless quality. They are haze filled, vaguely historic images that lack subjects and are often about the space rather than object. As a whole, I thought that this show was full, as in; complete. The artist Rinko Kawauchi does a similar job of documenting small and magical moments in the world in a much more “shoot from the hip” style and kodachrome look. Taca Sui gives us composed and elegiac silver gelatin photographs. Mood and tone are evident without shouting.
David Diao at Postmasters until April 27th.
Andrew Russeth wrote on David Diao for Gallerist and Blake Gopnik made a few brief comments at the Daily Beast. They will do better than I to discuss the artists motives and history. I love this show for all the things it plays with. I love an artist that can reinvent themselves. If you’re going to make your art so that there can be an elaborate punchline (take note Andrew Kuo) do it with gravitas. Diao gives us high brow jokes, inside jokes and oddly beautiful works. I was lucky enough to land in the middle of a conversation of Diao’s dealer and a critic that were kind enough to involve me in their discussion. It made me feel like I was in an artist engineered performance or some meta art world version of reality.
Edge, Order, Rupture at Galerie LeLong until May 4
Josef Albers, Jo Baer, Lygia Clark, Sarah Crowner, Liam Gillick, Peter Halley, Carmen Herrera, Catherine Lee, Tony Lewis, Sol LeWitt, Robert Mangold, Hélio Oiticica, Charlotte Posenenske, Sean Scully, Kate Shepherd
Essentially this is a group show that is unremarkable in character, but interesting in content. Three generations of abstract artists are pulled together here to create a wonderful story. I could go on about the dialogue it creates between movements and decades, but really its the simple fact that its a room full of good to great work. Jo Baer rubbing elbows with Josef Albers and Kate Shepherd. This is my idea of excitement. The title won’t let you know this is a show you need to see but I will.
