February 2023 Art Exhibits

My dog V had five beautiful puppies in Janurary so I naturally wasn’t able to attend the art madness on the west coast and as the emails flooded our daily art news with ZONAmaxco in Mexico City held Feb 8 – 12 and LA Frieze located for the first time in Santa Monica Airport Feb 16 – 19, there was still a lot of commotion in NYC, we are the city that never sleeps. Though we had nothing to envy since the weather in LA was mid 40s with brisk winds and very seldom rays of sunshine, so I happily celebrated the month of love (February) and fell in love with five particular exhibits this month.  

PACE GALLERY: David Hockney 20 Flowers and Some Bigger Pictures 

I didn’t want to include this exhibit at Pace Gallery by David Hockney as I take pride in focusing on emerging less established artists, but I was ecstatic to hear about this show. I visited France for the first-time last year and had the chance to visit Normandy where I encountered my beloved artist and friend Ana Pusica. She welcomed me to her family home in such a harmonious setting and I was able to learn that David Hockney had a home nearby and was still painting especially on his iPad. So, this exhibit is close to my heart beside the fact that I love him because we both have dachshunds, but to have been able to see what inspired this series in his home in Normandy was moving. “This exhibition presented a distinct series of editioned and signed inkjet prints including five landscapes, twenty floral still lifes, and a composite of three iPad paintings depicting a bouquet of gladioli.” Through his iPad you can still observe the detailed touch Hockney paints with capturing still life but also movement in his immense, yet airy landscapes filled with the keenest details. Unfortunately, this exhibition closed on the 25th but it was worth mentioning.

https://www.pacegallery.com/exhibitions/david-hockney-20-flowers-and-some-bigger-pictures/ 

CROSSING ART GALLERY: Ana Pusica Milk 2023  

Speaking of Ana Pusica, this exhibition is dear to my heart, not only is the artist a close friend but I am collector of her eclectic artworks as well. Combining abstract and figurative at its best, every single brushstroke is full of emotion, she is intense in her physical work applying her expression to the canvas in the liveliest way. Ana states her figures are for the viewers to interpret, your deep thoughts are exposed and translated into what you see in her work. This new body of work is a bold expression of who Ana is, not only as a person but her ethereal spirit. (Until April 10th)

https://crossingart.com/milk2023anapusica 

MNUCHIN GALLERY: Joan Mitchell – Christine Ay Tjoe  

I am reminded of the forest, in a calming way, similar to when it is autumn, and the sun is still shining yet the light is translucent, you know winter is coming therefore you enjoy that warmth provided by the sun with chilly winds that keep you cool. The paintings presented in this exhibition provide a radical dialogue between these two pioneering women. Both artists are inspired by nature letting emotions surround the canvas and applying energy with every brush stroke, you can feel the intense physical work. A beautiful exhibit to challenge your mind and stimulate your senses. (Until March 18)

https://www.mnuchingallery.com/exhibitions/joan-mitchell-christine-ay-tjoe-1#tab:slideshow 

HAUSER AND WIRTH: Roberto Cuoghi PEPSIS 

Cake, a giant spider and madness. You would think this was a group show with distinctive artists but surprisingly this is a collective of highly varied and emotionally charged presentation of different series and bodies of Cuoghi’s work. “He is known for an exacting, almost obsessive, research- and process-driven practice that spans the full spectrum of styles and genres.” Poking out of the second room on the gallery floor I spotted pastel hues which were a portrait series inspired by the images of faces published in an issue of TIME magazine during COVID-19. Daunting yet light, the people depicted in this series are extremely familiar faces, at the same time disguised into a blur. An evocative curation as there are multiple paintings in different sizes all harmonically displayed.  (Until April 1) 

https://vip-hauserwirth.com/gallery-exhibitions/roberto-cuoghi-pepsis/ 

HARPERS: Jonathan Casella Double Star 

I happened to see this gallery across the street from Dia Foundation in Chelsea when I was there for a Luncheon to celebrate the Chryssa & New York exhibition. The exuberant colors really drew my attention and I had to pop my head in. It was my first time exposed to Casella’s work, but it seemed they were his trademark compositions with striking intersections of dots, checkers, stripes, and bold colors. A real statement piece and conversation starter, I can see it in a client's entrance or hallway. “Casella’s approach to painting aims to expand and challenge the strict geometric rubric outlined by Josef Albers and the non-objective spirituality of Kazimir Malevich. By wielding a maximalist sensibility through use of high-key colors, pattern, repetition, and pastiche, he continues a postmodern legacy brought to both highbrow and mass consumer consciousness through movements such as the Memphis Group.” 

https://www.harpersgallery.com/exhibitions/jonathan-casella/installation-views#tab:slideshow;slide:5;tab-1:thumbnails