Free, Colombian chocolates offered at Chelsea gallery

A display authentic, rich chocolate goods is catching the attention of many New Yorkers, at a Chelsea gallery show. Artist Oscar Murillo’s exhibit A Mercentile Novel, offers a history of the candy-making company Colombina, based in Murillo’s hometown of La Paila, Colombia. Murillo has strong ties to Colombina as several generations of his family, including his parents have worked there. Murillo often integrates his cultural heritage and issues revolving around the theme of migration into his work. With this show, he explores the relationships between trade and globalization, individual relationships and communities, and roots and immigration. 

Oscar Murillo's mother Virgelina Murillo (center) working at Colombina

This show offers tens of thousands of free packages of Chocmelos, one of Colombina’s most famous chocolate candies with a creamy, marshmallow filling. Murillo has even set up a special webpage for this exhibition to track the project while building new communities. Murillo’s work has been featured at many solo and group exhibitions across the country and around the world, including one earlier this year at The Mistake Room in Los Angeles, and his first solo show at the South London Gallery last year. Additionally, Murillo is taking on a long-term project called "Frequencies,” put together by him and his family, where he will visit schools around the world to help expand students’ creative thought process.

At The David Zwirner Gallery, 519 W. 19th St., through Jun.14. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 10 a.m.—6 p.m.

Paintings of iconic and symbolic figures at Chelsea gallery

An enticing exhibition of paintings depicting both contemporary and religious iconic figures is currently on view in Chelsea. The show Secular Icons features work by Linda Smith where she uses the sky and water as the backdrop for her subjects that include people, animals, and plants with symbolic significance.

One of the pieces that stands out greatly is Force of Nature featuring a woman on the beach, opening her arms as she welcomes a flock of colorful birds gathering around her. She looks at the birds with amazement, as one dark-green colored bird with a long silky tail rests on her right arm. Another image called Evening depict a boy of about 10 years old, holding his nose as he’s floating up to the sky surrounded by dark red clouds, with the sun shining brightly behind. 

"Force of Nature" (2014) by Linda Smith

Similarly, Subliminal Sky also illustrates the sun shining behind dark red clouds and features a young man staring into the wide open space as a lizard sits on his shoulder. A free concert featuring performances by Honi Gordon, Wayne Smith, and Jason Smelter will complement the theme of the exhibit. The musicians will perform jazz and classical music at The Blue Mountain Gallery, Saturday, May 10th, from 2—3 p.m.

At The Blue Mountain Gallery, 530 W. 25th St., through May 17. There will be an opening reception at the gallery Apr. 26, from 3—6 p.m. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 11 a.m.—6 p.m.

Malala Yousafzai's portrait to be offered at Christie's New York

The portrait of a courageous Pakistani girl will be offered for sale at Christie’s New York next month. Malala Yousafzai, was an advocate for education for girls and women, and in October 2012, she was shot in the head by a Taliban while boarding a school bus. In the following days she gained worldwide recognition, receiving praise from President Obama as “The Bravest Girl in the World,” and earned the International Children’s Peace Prize. 

In April 2013, while recovering from her head injury, she met artist Jonathan Yeo who was so inspired by her strength and courage that he asked to paint her portrait. The painting, titled Girl Reading (Malala Yousafzai), which portrays the teenage girl, dressed in a white robe, sitting at a table with a book, while looking up at the viewer. 

"Girl Reading (Malala Yousafzai)" by Jonathan Yeo

Yeo first exhibited the painting at the London National Gallery, and Christie’s auction house in New York agreed to offer it for auction where it’s estimated to bring in $60,000-$80,000. It will be included in Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary Art on May 14th, and money raised will benefit the Malala Fund, a charity set up by Malala to support the fight for the right for girls and women to an education, freeing them from child labor. About his work, Yeo notes, “I hope the painting reflects the slight paradox of representing someone with enormous power and wisdom, yet vulnerability and youth at the same time.”  

The auction will be held May 14th at Christie's New York, 20 Rockefeller Plaza. (212) 636-2000.

Sotheby's eyeing $25 million for Jeff Koons' 'Popeye'

One of the most iconic animated characters in American pop culture is Popeye, the muscular, spinach-eating sailor man who has appeared in TV cartoons and comic strips since 1929. In his 85-year existence, Popeye has charmed audiences with his energy and high-pitched singing voice, and lately has even captured the attention of sculptor Jeff Koons. 

In 2009, Koons began work on a six-and-a-half foot tall, stainless steel reproduction of the beloved character that was completed in 2011. In this impressive work, Popeye wearing his trademark sailor hat, is holding a can of spinach in one hand and flexing his famously bulging muscles with his other arm. The piece will go on sale at a Sotheby’s auction next month in New York with an estimate of $25 million. 

Koons is best known for his imaginative sculptures of cartoonish characters and ordinary objects and has achieved huge financial success. In November, his 12-foot stainless steel Balloon Dog (Orange) sculpture sold at Christie’s for $58.4 million, becoming the highest-priced work by a living artist ever sold at auction. Balloon Dog is part of a series of five sculptures each painted in a different color. 
Other series of animal sculptures by Koons include Balloon Swan, Balloon Monkey, and Balloon Rabbit among others. 

Koons currently lives and works in New York City, and York, Penn. The auction will be held May 14th at Sotheby's New York, 1334 York Ave. (212) 606-7000.

Claudia DeMonte examines the power of fate at Soho gallery

Concepts of luck, both good and bad, are depicted quite creatively in a new exhibit by Claudia DeMonte in the show La Forza del Destino, (Italian for “the power of fate”). DeMonte’s vivid imagination is evident in her paintings and sculptures inspired by her travels around the world to countries such as Saudi Arabia, Senegal, and Tibet to observe their cultures and customs. She also had the advantage of growing up in an ethnically diverse part of Queens where she encountered objects that symbolized good luck and protection from evil.

A wood sculpture known as Our Lady of Good Fortune depicts a young woman wearing a pink skirt with nails sticking out and various objects such as pieces of fruit, a piece of hair, a five dollar bill, and a figure of a man wearing a suit, among other things. In addition to what can be seen on her dress, the woman also has her hands full with even more objects as though she were bearing gifts.

Similarly, a nearly 5-foot tall bronze sculpture titled Fate also features a woman with similar objects on her dress, but also balancing a basket on her head containing a rabbit, a Buddha, a dragon, an elephant, a duck, a red pepper, and the number “3” among other things.

Another notable installation in this show titled Charmed Life which consists of 56 figures made with acrylic on pulp paper, clustered together on the wall. These figures include a hummingbird, a dragon, a ladybug, a horseshoe, a turtle, a heart, a rainbow, two fish embracing, a foot, a hand with crossed fingers, a black cat, and a black dog.

DeMonte lives and works in New York City and in Kent, Connecticut and her work has been featured at shows across the country and around the world. At The June Kelly Gallery, 166 Mercer St., through May 13th. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 11 a.m.—6 p.m.

Marilyn Monroe portrait by Warhol for sale at Christie's New York

Marilyn Monroe will always be a legend in pop culture, with her beauty, charm, and charisma that has fascinated so many people around the world. One person who played a big part in her iconography was Andy Warhol, a legend in his own right. Warhol painted eight portraits of Monroe, each in a different light, and one of them will be offered next month at Christie’s New York auction house.

 Right after Monroe’s death in 1962, Warhol started work on White Marilyn, which was chosen for his first solo exhibition in November of that year at the Stable Gallery in New York, and was part of gallery owner Eleanor Ward’s personal collection for a long time. Warhol started experimenting with silkscreens at that time, and it was the process he used in creating photos of the late actress; he stenciled a photograph of Monroe on top of a painted background. 

Warhol, who has painted portraits of other glamorous icons such as Elizabeth Taylor and Jacqueline Kennedy has said about his series’ “I don’t feel I’m representing the main sex symbols of our time in some of my pictures… I just see Marilyn as another person.” White Marilyn is estimated to sell between $12-$18 million. The auction will be held May 13th at Christie's New York, 20 Rockefeller Plaza. (212) 636-2000.

                                                      "White Marilyn" by Andy Warhol

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