Che Lovelace’s “Where the I Settles” on display through July 25
“Where the I Settles” by Che Lovelace is the latest exhibition on view at the Nicola Vassell Gallery. The eight magnificent pieces by Lovelace aren’t just a display of his talent, but a conveyance through decades of history, emotion and memories of his upbringing in Trinidad. Lovelace seductively portrays the warmth of a sunset with deep oranges and the salty spray of the ocean with cool blues. He allows the viewer to see Port of Spain through his eyes and encounter its welcome. To those familiar with Lovelace, his work with acrylic paint on wooden panels may not come as a surprise, but his revival of the medium breathes new life and new energy into the work.
Each piece is made up of four quadrants. Each polyptych exists as a physical representation of fracturing — from four fractured images pressed together to create one work, to a fractured narrative separated by the margins of each panel. The panels were created individually then algorithmically placed to construct a greater image. Lovelace painted the individual quadrants, as well as their subsequent unions over a period of several years. This fractured timeline means that there could be hundreds of days or tens of thousands of hours between each streak of red or yellow. While influenced by cubism, Lovelace blends realism with abstraction to present dreamlike sequences.
What left me begging for more was the way each quadrant appears to be in conversation with each other as each piece tells a story. By invoking the conversation between sections of a work, I believe Lovelace captured the ability to serve as both an artist and a curator. “Where the I Settles” by Che Lovelace will be on display at the Nickola Vassell gallery until July 25. For more info, visit nicolavassell.com.
Malcolm Johnson photos
Bruce Dorfman’s “To Whom Do We Tell” on display through June 24
On display in SoHo right now, the June Kelly Gallery presents “To Whom Do We Tell” by Bruce Dorfman. The artist’s compelling display of abstraction binds shape and texture with pattern and composition. Each piece of combined media uses paint and sculpture in a way that manages to be eye-catching without necessarily being considered lovely. The work extends beyond borders. Dorfman’s work melds soft fabrics and dream-like imagery with sharp edges and the residue of industrialization. One can appreciate how striking the work is without it ever surpassing a traditional standard of beauty.
What I enjoyed most was each piece’s ability to play with my idea of expectation. The commonplace tools used throughout each work forced me to ponder when an item like a paintbrush evolved from being a vehicle to create art into becoming a part of the show. You’re left asking questions like: why is a ruler, a tool used to create order through measurement, nestled into a work of chaotic abstraction? Perhaps that’s Dorfman’s vision. Creating art so vivid, so inviting, that its gravitational pull ingests anything within arm’s reach. With that goes my imagination. “…To Whom Do We Tell…” by Bruce Dorfman will remain on display at the June Kelly Gallery until June 24. For more info, junekellygallery.com.
Toyin Ojih Odutola’s “ILE ORIAKU” on display through July 18
Very few things are more intimate than sharing a spiritual experience with another. At the Jack Shainman gallery in Tribeca, Toyin Ojih Odutola invites you on a journey that traverses life in the after, the before, the above, and the below. In “ILÉ ORIAKU,” Odutola takes you to a Mbari, a sacred space in Nigerian Owerri Igbo culture that celebrates members of the communities and honors its deities. Crossing the threshold into Shainman’s grotto of a gallery sends you into the mind of someone who speaks in a language of color and composition. Her stories will leave you aghast.
The exhibition comprises more than 30 works of charcoal, chalk, colored pencil, graphite and pastel on several surfaces, including paper and linen. Each piece is an image that immortalizes the family, friends, and “spiritual performers” connected to her Nigerian heritage. They range in scale: some are tall enough to dwarf most men, while others are only the size of a window. They also range in subject matter, with some images being a direct link to a heavenly realm, while others bending time in a way that forces the viewer to reflect on their own mortality. Each piece also presents a wide range of themes and motifs. Recurring silhouettes and shapes, deep shades of red, and white veils are ever-present. But this display of Black bodies, this summoning of Black stories, this compilation of Black beauty is a draw in itself. We stand in reverence of the talent that is Toyin Ojih Odutola and the mark she will leave on the future. “ILÉ ORIAKU” will remain on display at the Jack Shainman Gallery until July 18. For more info, visit jackshainman.com.