Filed under: Art World, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Must-Sees, New York, Philly, San Francisco, Santa Fe | Tags: Amy Casey, Andy Cross, Charles Ritchie, Chris Johanson, Cordy Ryman, Erik Parker, Jaqueline Cedar, Jered Sprecher, Kiel Johnson, Laurel Sparks, Leidy Churchman, Lesley Vance, Matt Connors, Must-Sees, Njideka Akunyili, Siobahn Liddell, Travis Collinson
Chris Johanson, Hey There, That’s You, 2011 | Acrylic and latex and mirror on wood, 45 1/2 x 54 inches. Courtesy Altman Siegel, San Francisco.
It’s time to break out the sunscreen and the summer group shows (and there’s no shortage of each). Our editorial staff have put together our Summer Must-See list for July and August, our guide to more than 50 of the best contemporary painting exhibitions in the country, including dozens of notable and not-to-be-missed shows by masters like De Kooning and serious emerging talent like Matt Connors, Lesley Vance, Leidy Churchman, Chris Johanson, and more. Also included are our picks for summer shows by artists previously featured in New American Paintings.
From L.A. to Chicago, Houston to New York and back, our guide includes exhibitions in every corner of the country. Images and listings after the jump!
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Barry McGee, Bay Area, Chris Johanson, Clare Rojas, Margaret Kilgallen, Mission District, Nadiah Fellah, Ratio 3, Rigo 23, the Mission School
Margaret Kilgallen, Untitled, c. 2000, Acrylic on canvas, 27 x 25 inches. Courtesy Ratio 3, San Francisco.
The Margaret Kilgallen show at Ratio 3 in San Francisco brings together over three dozen small works on paper and a handful of larger canvas pieces, all belonging to the late artist’s estate. An artist best remembered for a striking impression delivered with a duality of color and scale, the works at Ratio 3 are much more quiet, intimate, and candid. Some appear like private doodles, and others like focused studies for larger works, such as collections of lips or shoes punctuating a few small pages. All are drawn with her characteristic calligraphic lines in boldly colored acrylic.
Kilgallen—who died in 2001 at the age of 33—along with fellow artists Barry McGee (her husband and collaborator), Chris Johanson, Clare Rojas, Rigo 23 and several others have earned the movement moniker of The Bay Area Mission School, referring to the Mission District in San Francisco where many of them drew inspiration and lived or worked. The style is a reflection of low-tech, subversive art making, and relies on the inclusion of found objects, graffiti, and folk art quotations. It refers to a style that arose in the early 90s, but was not coined until 2002.
More after the jump! —Nadiah Fellah, San Francisco contributor
Filed under: Art World | Tags: Chris Johanson, Gabriel Orozco, Gerhard Richter, Jessica Stockholder, Jonas Wood, Luc Tuymans, Nadiah Fellah, Philip Guston, Rachel Harrison, Robert Rauschenberg, Vija Celmins
TOP: Robert Rauschenberg, Palladian Xmas (Spread), 1980 | Solvent transfer, acrylic, fabric and collage on wood panel, 74.25 x 133.75 x 7.5 inches. Courtesy Gagosian Gallery. BOTTOM: Jessica Stockholder, installation view of Sailcloth Tears, Mitchell-Innis & Nash, New York.
Last month, the editorial staff at New American Paintings posed the poll question, “Which artist, dead or alive, has most influenced contemporary painting?” Like many 20-somethings, I have suffered the youthful ignorance of generations that came before mine, but the fact remains that artists are often indebted to those that came before them. In the world of contemporary painting, there are a few artists that have emphatically led the pack in their generations, and they comprise the three names that received the most votes: Robert Rauschenberg, Gerhard Richter, and Philip Guston. Each revolutionized painting in their own right and have inspired entire generations of contemporary artists since. Read more after the jump! —Nadiah Fellah, San Francisco contributor
Filed under: Art World, Q&A | Tags: Altman Siegel Gallery, Chris Johanson, found materials, Nadiah Fellah, Silver Lake
Chris Johanson, Normal Natural Shit That Happens, 2010 | Acrylic on wood, 24.5 x 34 inches. Courtesy Altman Siegel Gallery, San Francisco.
Chris Johanson is an artist that likes to keep it pretty simple. His work has been a fixture in the Bay Area art scene for the past several years, made memorable by the bright palette that has become his signature. His new paintings, currently exhibited alongside works by Matt Keegan and Charley Harper in a group show at Altman Siegel Gallery in San Francisco, are “celebration-of-life-and-death paintings” he tells me. I recently spoke with Johanson from his bungalow overlooking the Hollywood Hills in Silver Lake, Los Angeles. Our conversation and more pics after the jump. —Nadiah Fellah, San Francisco contributor
Considering Perceptions, So Much For That Area, 2010 | Acrylic on found wood, 33 x 36 1/2 inches. Courtesy Altman Siegel Gallery, San Francisco.
