A New Year’s Gallery Guide

2021 is here, and there are so many fantastic shows to see. Here are a few of Artmuse Selects’ must-see gallery exhibitions to kick off the year with!

P.S. You can still sign up for the Winter/Spring 2021 season of Artmuse’s virtual presentations! Be guided through the latest art exhibitions, meet with artists in their studios, and have an engaging art experience from your computer. Learn more here or email ns@artmuseny.com to join!

1. Wolf Kahn: The Last Decade, 2010-2020 at Miles McEnery

Wolf Kahn (1927-2020) painted America’s forests with blazing colors and a singular vision. Now at Miles McEnery, the exhibition Wolf Kahn: The Last Decade celebrates the life and legacy of this great artist and presents work created within the final decade of his life. A refugee from Nazi Germany, Kahn immigrated to the United States in 1940 and settled in New York City, where he developed his bold style and lyrical palette to paint America’s natural landscapes. Kahn was a remarkable figure within American painting, and the exhibition at Miles McEnery is a must-see.

January 7 - February 13

525 West 22nd Street

Images courtesy of Miles McEnery Gallery and Artforum

2. Amir H. Fallah: Better a Cruel Truth Than a Comfortable Delusion at Denny Dimin Gallery

Born in Tehran and based in Los Angeles, Amir H. Fallah’s works re-define the genres of storytelling and portraiture with these richly-layered, beautiful paintings that examine the cultures we are a part of. Fallah and his family came to America in the wake of the Iranian Revolution, and his works tell vivid stories of people whose identities are also effected by the experiences of immigration, assimilation, and otherness. Fallah’s work is remarkable in the visual iconography the artist creates: each symbol can be analyzed again and again for their meaning and examination of society. His new body of work, completed during the pandemic, refers to skepticism over science, division, racism, climate change and more.

January 8 - February 20

39 Lispenard Street

Pictured: Better a Cruel Truth Than a Comfortable Delusion, 2020 |courtesy of Denny Dinim Gallery

3. Sarah Crowner at Casey Kaplan

With her exhibition at Casey Kaplan, Sarah Crowner presents new, large-scale paintings that are playful and joyous. Recalling the collages of Matisse and the soak-stain brushwork of Helen Frankenthaler, Crowner’s canvases feature luscious swathes of acrylic that are contrasted with bold, collaged compositions that are often cut from various patterns, painted, and then sewn back onto her canvas. These new works are largely duo-chromatic and brilliantly emphasize the play between two contrasting hues.

Through January 16

121 West 27th Street

Pictured: Installation view | courtesy of Casey Kaplan Gallery

4. Broadcasts: March Avery’s Watercolors at Blum & Poe

In conjunction with an exhibition installed in Los Angeles, Blum & Poe presents a brilliant selection of watercolors by March Avery that serve as intimate snapshots of the artist’s life. An astounding colorist in her own right, Avery spent her summers taking long road trips with her parents, Milton (yes, that Milton) and Sally, throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. These historic works act as scenes from these trips, conveying memories that are filled with immense heart and poetry.

Presented Online Here

Pictured: Terrace Readers, 1991 | courtesy of Blum & Poe

5. Theaster Gates: Black Vessel at Gagosian

Black Vessel is a magnificent first show at Gagosian for the prominent artist and activist Theaster Gates! Continuing his practice of working with a range of materials that mines art history, the histories of racial and social justice movements and the artist’s own experiences, Gates presents new works that recharge objects and materials such as claypots, bricks and books so that they are re-contextualized to teem with history. Beyond their aesthetic magnificence, Gates’ works are astounding in their ability to rewire the brain so that you cannot help but think of everyday sights anew. 

Through January 23, by appointment

555 West 24th Street

Pictured: installation view | courtesy of Gagosian

6. Double Happiness at The Hole

Double Happiness is a delight for your senses, presenting complimentary works by the artists Caroline Larsen and Roxanne Jackson. Larsen presents a group of intricate still-lives of flowers in their vases, rendered with thickly-lain detailed brushwork that give a psychedelic effect. Jackson presents a group of “punk ware” ceramic vases that feature snarky details. Double Happiness is a sensuous foray into ideas about the essence of these everyday objects.

January 7 - February 7

312 Bowery

Pictured: Caroline Larsen, Double Longway, 2019 (above); Roxanne Jackson, Lips Vase, 2020 (detail, below) | Courtesy of The Hole

7. Amy Sherald: Womanist is to Feminist as Purple is to Lavender at Hauser & Wirth

Amy Sherald’s online exhibition feature beautiful portraits of women whose confidence and centeredness is palpable. Each woman is rendered using a delicate, grisaille skin-tone that is Sherald’s signature, juxtaposed with boldly-hued clothing and accessories. This presentation of images of Black women is beautiful and relaxed, and an easy online exhibition to access and enjoy.

Presented Online Here

Pictured: Untitled, 2020 (above); Untilted, 2020 (below) | courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth via Creative Boom

8. Rhe: Everything Flows at Galerie Lelong

Rhe: Everything flows explores both the symbolic and physical importance of water to humankind. Encompassing works across media, this fantastic group exhibition includes works in painting, photography, performance art, film, and water in its actual form. 

Artists included: Petah Coyne, Ficre Ghebreyesus, Andy Goldsworthy, Jane Hammond, Alfredo Jaar, Rosemary Laing, Cildo Meireles, Ana Mendieta, Jaume Plensa, Carolee Schneemann, Kate Shepherd, Michelle Stuart, Juan Uslé and Catherine Yass. 

January 7 - February 13

528 West 26th Street

Pictured: Catherine Yass, Lighthouse (North), 2011 (above); Jaume Plensa, Freud’s Children VII, 2001 (below) | courtesy of Galerie Lelong

9. Gordon Parks: Half and the Whole at Jack Shainman

Gordon Parks (1912-2006) was a legendary photographer—as well as film director, composer, and writer—whose work from the 1940s through the 1970s captures American social movements as well as glamour photography. Born in Kansas in 1912, Parks grew up in the Jim Crow-era, and his experience of racism and racial terror led him to teach himself photography to document the ills—and joys—of American society. Parks would become the first Black photographer on staff at Life magazine and is now considered one of the most important photographers of all time.

January 7 - February 20

513 West 20th Street & 524 West 24th Street

Pictured: Department Store, Mobile, Alabama, 1956, (above); The Invisible Man, Harlem, New York, 1952 (below) | courtesy of Jack Shainman

10. Mernet Larsen at James Cohan

Mernet Larsen uses art movements of the past, such as Suprematism, Constructivism, Dada and Surrealism, to comment upon the present. With her unique visual iconography, Larsen creates narrative painting depicting linear figures in uncanny situations. The resulting works are humorous in their comment upon our present moment and keen in their references to El Lissitzky and the tenets of painting.

Through January 23

48 Walker Street

Pictured: Solar System, Explained (After El Lissitzky), 2020 (above); image of the artist (below) | courtesy of James Cohan Gallery

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Jen Ray

Multidisciplinary artist Jen Ray presents performances, paintings, and sound works that celebrate female confidence and self-determination. Drawing inspiration and symbolism from a wide range of socio-political and cultural references, from feminist science fiction and dystopian theory, to seventies glam rock, to multi-layered historical references and gendered storytelling, the artist challenges static or reverential perceptions of feminism and encourages on-going discussions about gender, intersectionality, and identity politics. Follow Jen on instagram, @jen_ray_nyc!

Watercolor from 2020 via @jen_ray_nyc on instagram.

Newsletter written by Samantha Kohl