Norwegian artist captures the 'Winter Mood' in latest show

The Trygve Lie Gallery, located on the lower level of the Norwegian Seaman Church in Midtown East, is currently presenting a collection of photographs by Sigrid Thorbjørnsen for the show Winter Mood.

For her third solo show in New York, Thorbjørnsen presents black and white photographs depicting scenes of Norway in the wintertime. She prints her photographs on handmade Washi paper, some of which Thorbjørnsen created herself. The word “Washi” mean Japanese paper and is made from Gampi, Mitsumata, or Kozo wood as well as bamboo, hemp, rice, and wheat. Making Washi paper has been practiced in Japan for centuries.The Washi paper in this show comes from the Kozo tree, which is often cut in January when the bark is at its best quality.

Winterflowers by Sigrid Thorbjørnsen 

As the title of the show suggests, Thorbjørnsen effectively captures the isolation and solitude that’s often associated with the winter season. For instance, the image Way of Life depicts a log cabin sitting in a secluded area by a frozen lake on a ground covered in snow with several pieces of wood behind it, appearing to be holding it up. A similar image known as Winterflowers was taken on a snowy day with flakes rapidly blowing in the wind as a house can be seen alone in the distance with the rooftop covered in snow.

Another photograph taken with fast moving snowflakes is one known as Forbindelsen (meaning “connection”) where telephone poles and power lines are partially obscured as they’re seen from afar. This powerful image represents resilience as the wires remain unbroken and therefore connections are unbroken. One of the most notable pieces in the show is the image Counting my Blessings, a close-up of a baby angel resting its chin on its arms and looking up to the Heavens evoking feelings of love and warmth during the holiday season.

Thorbjørnsen was born in Japan but was raised in Norway and this exhibition eloquently captures her roots in both places.

At the Trygve Lie Gallery, 317 East 52nd St., through Dec. 12. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 12 p.m.—5 p.m.

Nancy Beal's illuminating landscape and still-life paintings on view in Chelsea

The Blue Mountain Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of work by Nancy Beal for the exhibition Landscape/Still Life/Tuscany. For this show, Beal offers landscape and still-life paintings that are rich in color and light and evoke a sense of tranquility with their simple, natural beauty.

Flowers are a popular subject, especially in her still-life paintings. One notable piece titled Red Hollyhocks, petunias Portugal features a ceramic vase holding an assortment of flowers with the bright red color of the hollyhocks contrasting with the other rose and lavender colored petunias and the white daisies. The scene takes place outdoors on a bright, sunny day with the vase resting on an outdoor table where fields of grass and the clear blue sky clearly visible in the distance.

Pink Flowers, Green Vase (2014) by Nancy Beal

Similarly, Spanish Pot, Tomatoes is also set outdoors and features an assortment of yellow, orange, and blue flowers in a ceramic pot and on a table with a floral tablecloth with four red tomatoes next to it. Another notable floral still-life piece titled Pink Flowers, Green Vase is a close-up image of a green vase with assorted pink, red, lavender, and white flowers on a table with a white floral tablecloth inside a home.

Beal offers several landscape paintings many of which she completed during a residency program in Tuscany at Macina di San Cresci. One notable painting titled Mimma’s Window depicts the vista from outside the window of where she was staying. In this piece, she uses several different shades of green for the grass, bushes, and leaves on trees. In a similar image titled Basil and Tomato, Chianti Window, the wooden window panes are visible with a flower pot containing basil, and a bowl of small tomatoes on the ledge, overlooking the clear blue sky, hills, trees, and villas out in the distance.

At The Blue Mountain Gallery, 530 W. 25th St., through Nov. 28. The gallery is open Tue-Sat. from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m.

Diane Drescher captures the beauty of northern Manhattan in latest show

The Bowery Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of work by Diane Drescher for an exhibition titled Urban Landscapes: Off the Grid. For her second solo show at the gallery, Drescher unveils several plein air paintings that capture scenes of the bridges and parks in northern Manhattan.

Nature is an important element in Drescher’s paintings which are filled with vivid colors, strong brushstrokes, and striking compositions. Several of these paintings come from Drescher’s Bridge series where she focuses on the overhead bridge beneath the Henry Hudson parkway. One of these pieces titled Bridge Early Morning, illustrates a bike path gradually descending from underneath the bridge. Drescher effectively shows the sunlight shining through while also showing reflections of shadows exuded by trees and surrounding land. A similar piece titled First Early Morning Bridge, the bike path seems a bit wider and a red, brick building sits at the edge, and Workers Finishing the Job shows us the same scene but with two men standing by orange construction cones.

Bridge Early Morning by Diane Drescher

Many of Drescher’s paintings evoke an oasis of calm, such as Red Roof where she captures the calm flow of the Hudson River as the lush, green trees of New Jersey can be seen out in the distance. As the title suggests, two houses (one with a dark red roof and one with a rose-colored roof) can be seen by the western end of Manhattan at the foot of the river. Other notable images include Gingko Tree and Bridge depicting yellow-green grass and the George Washington Bridge out in the distance, and Urban Landscapes and Trees and Shadows, both of which depict tilted tree branches in a garden with a pink house in the background.

At the Bowery Gallery 530 W. 25th St., through Nov. 28. The gallery is open Tue.-Sat. from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m.

Renowned sculptor Matteo Pugliese presents new work at Chelsea gallery

The Bertrand Delacroix Gallery in Chelsea is presenting a collection of work by Matteo Pugliese for the show Breath of Freedom. For his first solo show in the United States, the Italian sculptor unveils several of his signature large-scale bronze sculptures of muscular men, bronze and terracotta warriors, and small animals.

Pugliese conveys notions of strength, power, and tension through his subjects. For instance, several of his sculptures which he refers to as “Extra Moenia” (a Latin phrase meaning “outside the walls”) illustrate the body parts such as the heads, arms, and legs of men emerging from the gallery walls. These men are pushing through the walls with all of their strength to represent the idea that one can break free from constraints. They might face challenges in life or endure some of the worst hardships imaginable, but with strength and perseverance, they will be able to come out the other side much stronger than they were before. Once they’ve broken through the walls, there’s opportunity for starting a new life with newly acquired wisdom and thicker skin.

Kyria (2014) by Matteo Pugliese

Pugliese’s series of sculptures known as The Guardians depict brave warriors dressed in heavy metal combat gear proudly holding weapons such as pitchforks and spears. They stand tall with astute expressions and with pride in their eyes that comes with gaining knowledge and experience.

Pugliese was born in Milan and spent his childhood in Sardinia, where he developed a passion for drawing and sculpting. 

In 2001, he organized his first solo exhibition in Milan, with two more solo shows following shortly afterward. Today, his works are on display in major cities around the world, including New York City, Rome, Hong Kong, London, Brussels, Lugano, and Antwerp. In 2014, Pugliese was selected to create an installation at Caffe Florian, Italy’s oldest café located in the Piazza San Marco in Venice. He currently splits his time between Milan and Barcelona.

At the Bertrand Delacroix Gallery, 535 W. 25th St., through Dec. 4. The gallery is open Tue.—Sat. from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

Mongolian artist GAMA combines fairytale elements with Old Master styles

Chambers Fine Art in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of oil paintings by an artist known as GAMA for the show Idylls of the Kings. The works in this show are quite imaginative as many of them feature animals, manikins and other characters, and also plenty of mushrooms. 

For instance, the piece Losung (Denouement) depicts a fight between two warriors riding on horses, one black and the other white, shown going head to head as they battle conflicting feelings of hostility and attraction toward each other. GAMA captures the intensity and truly makes the scene seem real as he illustrates the back of the black horse’s body obscured from behind the green curtain that he’s jumping out from. Meanwhile, the back of the white horse’s body blends into the lavender color of the warrior’s cape.

GAMA references Hans Christian Andersen’s classic fairy tale The Princess and the Pea with the piece Gemach II (Chamber II) illustrating a stack of colorful mattress stack one on top of the other. The top mattress appears to have a mountain of dirt rising from it where mushrooms are growing, and some dirt with mushrooms can be seen coming from the sides of the other mattresses as well. A figure resembling a small, stuffed doll is balancing at the edge of the top mattress as she holds a bottle of liquor in her hand.

Losing (Denouement) (2010) by GAMA

Another intriguing piece titled Waldbuhne: Scene in the Woods combines indoor and outdoor settings with bedroom fixtures such as a dresser, a lamp, a table, two windows, and a rack for hats and scarves. There are also tree branches as well as a dirt floor with mushrooms growing. Also, in some of the paintings, you’ll see that the main image does not fully extend to the edge of the canvas to convey the notion that an oil painting is simply oil applied to a canvas that was once blank.

GAMA also pays homage to many of the great Old Master and 19th century German Romanticism paintings. For example, Havarie (Ocean Flame) is modeled after Caspar David Friedrich’s 1824 masterpiece, The Sea of Ice depicting a shipwreck in the middle of a broken ice sheet with pointy shards piling up in the middle. GAMA’s version is nearly an exact replica of his idol’s but also features a small house far out in the distance, burning down.

GAMA was born in Mongolia and lives and works in Berlin. He was raised in a traditional nomadic family, where he and his parents would move every four months as the seasons changed. He was inspired by his great aunt who was a shaman, as he was fascinated by her ability to connect with the supernatural world. He studied oil painting at the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA) in Beijing before moving to Germany to attend the Karlsruhe Academy where he was exposed to the figurative painting of New Leipzig School and began studying the works of European Old Masters as well as contemporary German painters such as Georg Baselitz, Sigmar Polke and Gerhard Richter.

At Chambers Fine Art, 522 W.19th St., through Dec. 19. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 10 a.m.—6 p.m.

Benjamin Degen illustrates how 'Where We Live' becomes a part of one's identity

The Susan Inglett Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of work by Benjamin Degen for an exhibition titled Where We Live. As the title of the show suggests, Degen offers several paintings where he examines the different relationships that individuals and groups of people have with the place they call home and how it becomes part of their character.

The inspiration behind these works came when Degen came back to New York City after having lived elsewhere for three and a half years and barely recognized the city he once knew. Many of his old neighborhood haunts were gone, yielding to tall luxury buildings making him feel somewhat out of place. He describes his fond memories of his friends and neighbors as “ghosts [being] whited out by new glass buildings that didn’t know them or leave much room for memory.”

Rip Van (2015) by Benjamin Degen

Degen references the story of Rip Van Winkle in the pieces Rip Van and New Construction, and Dawn. Rip Van depicts the head of a man sleeping just as Washington Irving’s protagonist did, while in New Construction, the man’s arm can be seen as he’s pointing to several new, tall buildings in front of him that weren’t there when he went to sleep. Dawn features a woman sleeping in a simple, familiar environment with several colorful trees waiting to greet her as she arises.

Similarly, a piece titled Bird illustrates an indigo colored bird flying across the center of the image with a skyline of some small buildings revealing a dark sky. However in Migration, the bird plus another bird behind it can be seen flying south as more and more tall buildings rise up behind them.

Other notable works include portraits of individuals in the comfort of their homes and neighborhood haunts such as with Park, featuring a young man walking his dog with a soccer ball behind him, and Drawing, Drinking, Sleeping, Dreaming depicting a couple sleeping on their bed side by side with a table containing a pencil, paper, and a can and bottle of beer. 

Degen also includes still-lifes of porcelain pottery with Chinese designs such as with Fragile Box illustrating a vase inside a cardboard box, Plant in Dragon Pot featuring a flower pot resting on a windowsill with images of dragons and clouds on the side, and Ming depicting an urn about to fall over with a black cat lurking behind with bright, green eyes.

At The Susan Inglett Gallery, 522 W. 24th St., through Dec. 5. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 10 a.m.—6 p.m.

Richard Pousette-Dart's abstract drawings on display in Soho gallery

Richard Pousette-Dart is one of the most well established artists of the twentieth century and a special exhibition of his work is currently on view at The Drawing Center in Soho. The exhibition titled Richard Pousette-Dart: 1930s includes approximately 80 of his drawings from that time. Growing up in New York City to parents who worked in creative fields, Pousette-Dart was constantly inspired by the arts and culture and took up drawing and painting at age eight.

As a young man in the 1930s, he began studying the abstract sculptures, drawings, and forms of French artist Henri Gaudier-Brzeska who had passed away two decades earlier at age 23. Pousette-Dart created many abstract, three-dimensional drawings during this time with many of them focusing on human and animal forms all while taking into account relationships between positive and negative space.

One of the works in the show that truly stands out is Bird and Fish, a piece that eloquently illustrates harmony. As the title suggests, the piece features outlines of the two creatures filled with a forest-green watercolor paint. The bird sits to the left, perched with its eyes closed and wings resting at the sides of its body while the fish lays in a diagonal position close to the bird, upside down with its eyes closed with his head facing the bird’s back feathers and its tail facing the bird’s beak. 

Bird and Fish (1930s) by Richard Pousette-Dart

The study of dance is also a very popular subject of Pousette-Dart’s drawings. One intriguing untitled piece illustrates the outline of a man against a sky blue background, his upper body larger than his lower body as he stands in a pose with his feet stretched out and holding his arms out in front as he makes mysterious movements with his hands.

One of Pousette-Dart’s most raw works in the show is Agony depicting a man suffering that dreadful state of being. The man stands with one knee bent as he’s hunched over with his arms and head hanging as though grief and the weight of the world are bearing down on him. The crimson background brings added gravity. In Walking Man, Pousette-Dart uses two colors that starkly contrast with a bright yellow background and a crimson-colored shapes separated by thick, black brushstrokes forming the body of a man on the move. The outlines of each shape effectively illustrate the man’s muscular physique nearly resembling a robot.

At The Drawing Center, 35 Wooster St., through Dec. 20. Open Wed.—Sun. from 12—6 p.m., and Thu. from 12—8 p.m.

Freight + Volume presents Maria Walker's poetic paintings at new LES location

In its new Lower East Side location, the Freight + Volume gallery is presenting a collection of work by Maria Walker for the show Trees Breeze Green with the title of the show coming from a poem she wrote. For this show, Walker presents several intriguing works of art where she uses wooden boards to created uniquely shaped and stretched out backdrops that she covers with acrylic paintings.

One might assume that Walker worked often with light color for the first four months of the year because her piece for May only includes small glimmers of golden paint. May depicts a large pond practically dominating the image with several violet, blue, and red shapes coming from the sides and one of them closely resembling a fish. 

September (2014) by Maria Walker

Not that much paint can be seen in July which features a stroke of gray paint down the center. The gray is covered with turquoise which eventually veers off to the side to form a small head, possibly of some type of insect, as there are many in the summertime. The dominant color is purple of which there are different shades that overlap. The color starts to come back in September with round crimson shapes emerging from the top and left sides as well as shades of blue, green, and deep yellow possibly capturing the changing color of the leaves on the trees for Autumn. In the upper-left corner an outline of a horse can be seen.

Walker also includes works that reflect her experience of living in Brooklyn. For instance, she observes the scene of her daily commute in Heading Home on Atlantic that features a wooden triangular cut-out depicting a car on the road as she travels home at the peak of sunset with the warm, orange background, and a small, pink triangle emerging from under the painting illustrating the falling sun.

Also of note is Walker’s window series where she draws inspiration from actual windows inside her studio, in her home, or in her mother’s or sister’s homes. The windows represent something we look through and look at, relationships between spatial and perspective views, and the quality of light arriving to the eye from a distance. Notable works in this series include Dawn, featuring two wooden boards covered in white acrylic and gesso, and Ohio Living Room With Trees featuring a zigzag pattern of tree branches and leaves.

At Freight+Volume, 97 Allen St., through Nov. 4. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 11 a.m.—6 p.m.

Dona Nelson trusts instincts with new paintings at Chelsea gallery show

The Thomas Erben Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of new paintings by Dona Nelson in a self-titled show. Nelson’s last show at the gallery emphasized the significance of Nelson’s double-sided paintings, while this show focuses on the more basic aspects of her work. She begins working on each piece by applying paint or acrylic-soaked cheesecloth onto the canvas and without having any idea how the finished product will turn out, relying only on her instincts that yield to phenomenal results.

Nelson’s paintings are double-sided and she lets her imagination run wild with her abstract style, vibrant colors, and playful subjects. For instance, Ribbed Red features the three primary colors (red, yellow, and blue) and also white seeping into each other against a ridged background with the yellow portion being vertical with an eruption on the side. The other side of the painting is presented on a flat surface outlined with a grid with the yellow portion in the shape of a small airplane.

Ribbed Red (2015) by Dona Nelson

A similar piece titled Coins in a Fountain features an outline resembling a giant bird on one side spread out diagonally across the canvas as though it’s flying down toward something attractive. The object of the bird’s attention is most likely the cluster of golden coins represented by the yellow spots that culminate in the lower right corner. The other side of the image is covered with turquoise paint that include oval shapes, leaving only small openings to reveal the white background and brown coloring of the bird on the flip side.

Images like The Old Apple Tree have a mellower vibe being covered in blue paint with one side of the image featuring what appears to be a long tree trunk tilting over with a collection of old apples that have fallen sitting by the roots. Several faces of ghosts and other creatures can be seen in the background.

When working on these paintings, Nelson kept in mind the idea that every action that one takes depends on previous ones, resulting in a complex layering where an earlier decision may dramatically affect later possibilities. This method requires a confidence gained through a lifetime of experience, of not knowing beforehand what will come next but trusting her instincts and being able to go with the flow.

At the Thomas Erben Gallery, 526 W. 26th St., through Oct. 31. The gallery is open Tue. -Sat. from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

William Villalongo explores the 'Mind, Body, and Soul' at Chelsea gallery show

The Susan Inglett Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting an exhibit by William Villalongo for the exhibition Mind, Body, and Soul. For this show, Villalongo unveils several vignette paintings where he delves into his own imaginary realm filled with nymphs and sirens surrounded by floral patterns and velvet flocked borders to convey a dreamy atmosphere.

One intriguing piece titled Olympia’s Window reflects themes of romance the gaze of a man in love. The top left part of the image features a heart shape with the inside of it depicting a woman leaning out of her window and holding her arm out to a man standing outside who reaches his hand out to meet hers as they gaze into each other’s eyes. The background of the painting is navy blue and is filled with colorful design including human faces and a figure who appears to be seated Indian-style.

Olympia's Window (2015) by William Villalongo

Villalongo pays homage to the four seasons of the year with four different paintings with each one featuring a silhouette of a young woman shown from head to toe with her bones and other internal organs visible and effectively captures the ambience that each season brings. The paintings have one dominant color decorated with unique floral patterns leading to an open space where in which the silhouette is standing. In Winter, the color is dark blue with the young woman standing on a block of ice as a bare tree branch hangs over her head. In Spring, the color is yellow and the woman is standing on a grassy hill with her bones emitting neon colors. Summer also features a woman standing on grass with dark green surrounding the image and so does Autumn with the dominant color being bright orange and depicting a squirrel running up a tree.

Racial inequality and social justice are also common themes in Villalongo’s work. For instance, Black Lives Matter portrays a nude black woman sitting on a bench by a lake wearing boxing gloves and holds up one arm and a silhouette of a woman holding her wrist amidst a navy blue background filled with several shapes including leaves, eyes, black hearts, and an open hand.

At The Susan Inglett Gallery, 522 W. 24th St., through Oct. 17. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 10 a.m.—6 p.m.

Ji Zhou depict 'Civilized Landscapes' at Chelsea gallery

The Klein Sun Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of work by Ji Zhou for the exhibition Civilized Landscape. For this show, Zhou presents several photographs of maps and books and uses them to represent landscapes of possibility. For instance, he collects maps that he sculpts into the shape of mountains some of which are small and others more massive with more, defined tops. Some of his map images feature groups of hills and mountains connected illustrating natural evolution, while other images feature isolated bodies of land such as in one image that features a small hill surrounded by water with a small rock to the right.

The Map No. 6 (2015) by Ji Zhou

Zhou’s images of books also vary in size and height to represent towers and urban skyscrapers. One notable piece titled Maquette 4 that features several piles of hard copy and paperback books grouped together with the tallest stack of books in the center surrounded by other stacks of books that illustrate a staircase leading to the very top. The books likely embody a significant building such as a palace due to its colossal size and unique displays of books to form a grand entrance.

Ji Zhou was born in Beijing and studied at the Pantheon-Sorbonne University in Paris where he received his MFA in Plastic Arts. His work has been featured in many solo exhibitions throughout China, France, and Spain.

At the Klein Sun Gallery, 525 W. 22nd St., through Oct. 10. The gallery is open Mon.—Sat. from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.

Martha Armstrong presents landscape paintings of east and west coast scenes

The Bowery Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of work by Martha Armstrong for the exhibition East to West: Recent Paintings. For this show, Armstrong unveils several new oil paintings of the landscapes of Massachusetts, Vermont, and Tucson, Arizona where she uses an abstract realist style. 

Many of these works feature bright colors and vivid patterns while others feature cooler colors. For instance, works such as Going, Going, Gone, Almost Red, and Dusk Colors illustrate forests where the trees and grass have various shades of green with a couple of bright orange, pink, or red trees that truly stand out. 

Going, Going Gone (2014) by Martha Armstrong

Armstrong effectively captures mountains and hills that are beautifully reflected in the surrounding rivers and lakes with images such as with Lake at Mt. Gretna or Pavilion Series 11. She also illustrates Tucson’s Sombrero Peak at different times of the day; Sombrero Peak Sun depicts the historic park in the morning with the sun warmly shining in the midst of dark clouds while Sombrero Peak I illustrates the park in the mid-afternoon with a pale blue sky with light softly hitting the hills and trees.

Armstrong compares the subjects of her landscape paintings to the relationships between characters and settings in American Literature by saying “If you think about American Literature the landscape is as important as the people, from Willa Cather, Hemingway, and John Steinbeck to Wallace Stegner, Norman Maclean, and Marilynne Robinson…not as a metaphor for something else but as something we are part of.”

At the Bowery Gallery 530 W. 25th St., through Oct. 3. The gallery is open Tue.—Sat. from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. There will be an opening reception at the gallery Saturday, Sept. 12 from 3-6 p.m., and Armstrong will give a talk Wednesday, Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m.

Russell Young's famous silkscreen images on view at Chelsea gallery

The internationally renowned British artist Russell Young is currently presenting a special exhibition of work at the Bertrand Delacroix Gallery in Chelsea titled Fame/Shame to honor the man for whom the gallery is named. For this show, Young presents a collection of his famous enamel screen-print paintings. His subjects are various media personalities, which he portrays in both positive and negative fashions to illustrate the trials, and tribulations that lurk behind the seemingly glamorous life of celebrities.

The subject that stands out the most is Marilyn Monroe whom Young portrays with a pink, silkscreen image featuring the iconic film star delivering that hearty, charismatic laugh of hers in Marilyn Monroe Laughing portraying her as the goddess that the public loves and celebrates. However with Marilyn Monroe Up Close, the viewer sees her inner sorrow caused by the pressures of trying to maintain her well-known persona that would lead to her death at age 36. Another image that stands out is one featuring supermodel Kate Moss standing in a bathroom wearing only her underwear and platform heels with long, black leggings as she holds a teddy bear close to her chest as though she’s trying to hold on to her innocence.

Marilyn Monroe Laughing (2009) by Russell Young

The grittiest images in the show delve show the viewer the destructive paths that many individuals choose where they feel they have nowhere else to turn, and include mug shots of a young Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, and notorious criminal Charles Milles Manson each containing blue, yellow, or red paint over them. Young finds these photographs from newspaper cuttings, auctions, and even police departments, which he then covers with silkscreen and sometimes sprinkling them with diamond dust, and then signing his work with his own blood.

Young was born in York, England and studied at Chester Art College and Exeter Art College and gained recognition photographing celebrities such as Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Diana Ross, and Paul Newman among many others. He also directed several music videos for MTV in the 1990s before turning to art and painting in 2000 while living in New York. He was a close friend and collaborator of Bertrand Delacroix, a creative and adventurous entrepreneur who passed away in June and for whom the gallery is named.

At the Bertrand Delacroix Gallery, 535 W. 25th St., through Sept. 29. The gallery is open Tue.—Sat. from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

Mexicue's southwestern fare makes rising chain a popular local favorite

In New York City, you’ll find a fair amount of Mexican restaurants and a fair amount of Southern-style barbeque joints, but it can be rare to find a place that offers both. However, Mexicue, a budding chain with three New York City locations does just that, using the freshest spices, vegetables, and other ingredients possible with every dish cooked slowly and thoroughly.

Mexicue has become particularly appealing to young adults with its locations being near major attractions and hangout spots such as Times Square, Bryant Park, Madison Square Park, and Madison Square Garden, and also for its reasonable prices.

Other appealing factors include their taco bar and their taco and bowl bar that offers customers a choice of three tacos, which they can put together themselves. Customers can choose two out of the five types of fillings offered which are smoked chicken, smoky carnitas, burnt ends chili, and brisket. Tasty additions include corn salsa, cotija cheese, creamy chipotle sauce, or Mexican BBQ sauce to name a few. The taco bar offers white flour tortillas on the side while the taco & bowl bar also include Mexican rice, salad, and black beans. If you wish to upgrade further, the Mexicue Gold Bar includes everything in the taco & bowl bar plus a choice of one side, which are green chili mac and cheese, blackened brussel sprouts, quinoa, or spicy slaw.

 Another reason why Mexicue is such a popular hotspot is its wide range of more than 50 types of beer, wine, bourbon, and tequila to choose from which can make for some very creative cocktails. Such specialties include the Seasonal Jungle Juice containing fruit, moonshine, bourbon, and limeade, the ginger-infused Mexicue Mule with bourbon, fresh ginger, ginger beer, chili ginger syrup, and lime juice, or the delectable Chocolate Bourbon containing bourbon, coffee, kahlua, baileys, mole bitters, and cocoa powder.

Notable appetizers include Grilled Corn Bread with chipotle butter, Watermelon Radishes with sea salt, or Grilled Shrimp Tostada with citrus vinaigrette, chili bean spread, creamy chipotle, and corn salsa to name a few. Perhaps not surprisingly, enchiladas and burritos are very popular. Some of the best types include the Smoked chicken Enchiladas Suiza, the Spicy Brisket Enchiladas, the Jamburrito, the Burnt Ends Brisket burrito, and the Green Chili Pork Burrito among others.

Mexicue has three Manhattan locations: 1440 Broadway on 40th St. between Broadway and Sixth Ave. (212) 302-0385; 225 Fifth Ave. between 26th and 27th St. (646) 922-7289; 345 Seventh Ave. between 29th and 30th St. (212) 244-0002.

Seward Johnson's iconic sculptures grace the streets of the Garment District

If you’ve been walking down Broadway lately, just a little bit south of Times Square you may have noticed something out of the ordinary as though art and history were coming to life.

A collection of 18 life-sized bronze sculptures by renowned sculptor Seward Johnson dazzle five blocks of Broadway in a public art show titled Seward Johnson in New York presented by the Garment District Alliance’s “Summer Arts on the Plazas” program. The exhibition is divided into three sub-categories that are titled Celebrating the Familiar, Beyond the Frame, and Icons Revisited all of which include pieces created at different points in his career throughout the past 30 years.

With the series Celebrating the Familiar, Johnson intelligently captures the daily life in America by portraying ordinary individuals going about their business. Notable works from this series include Holding Out depicting a woman carrying a heavy brown paper bag of groceries in one hand while balancing two white shopping bags in the other. Another work from this series titled Frequent Flyers features two businessmen are walking alongside each other with one man tilting his head with a curious expression on his face as though he’s commenting on something interesting he’s observed as his partner looks at him with interest in what he might be saying.

Embracing Peace

The series Beyond the Frame is a charming ode to French Impressionist and other great painters as Johnson takes scenes from some of the most celebrated artworks of all time and puts them into a twenty-first century context. Johnson includes scenes from many of Renoir’s paintings such as Dance in the Country, Dance in the City, or Dance at Bouvigal, all of which feature couples dancing and are enchanting replicas of the original paintings. 

Johnson also re-creates the scene from Manet’s Chez Pere Lathuille where a couple are spending the afternoon in an outdoor café as the waiter looks on from a distance holding a teapot. Johnson refers to his version as Eye of the Beholder to capture the scene from the waiter’s point of view. Other notable works from this series are God Bless America inspired by Grant Wood’s iconic American Gothic painting depicting a farmer holding a pitchfork with his wife standing next to him, and Monet, Our Visiting Artist portraying one of the greatest painters of the era as though he were visiting New York City for the first time and painting exactly what he sees in front of him.

Johnson’s interest in politics and pop culture clearly emerges through his Icons Revisited series. Works from this series include a 1991 installation titled Return Visit, featuring Abraham Lincoln delivering the famous Gettysburg Address to a twentieth century man, and the 2011 installation Forever Marilyn of America’s most legendary and charismatic film star standing over a subway grate with her white dress flowing in the wind as the train passes.

Perhaps the most notable work from this series is Embracing Peace depicting a sailor carrying roses and bending over to kiss a nurse re-creating Alfred Eisenstaedt’s renowned photograph that graced the cover of Life Magazine on August 14th 1945 celebrating Victory Over Japan Day marking the end of World War II.  A much larger 25-foot version of this sculpture has been recently installed in the heart of Times Square to mark the 70th anniversary of the victorious occasion.

Seward Johnson in New York is presented on Broadway between 36th and 41st Streets, and will be on view through Sept. 15.

Artists present work inspired by residency in rural Massachusetts

The Klein Sun Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting two solo shows this summer featuring the work of rising artists Geng Xue and Ying Zhu. Last month, both artists participated in a Klein Sun residency program at Millers Falls Art Bridge in Western Massachusetts led by Richard Widmer.

Geng Xue’s portion of the show is titled Borrowing an Easterly Wind and is displayed in the gallery’s South Gallery. Growing up in Beijing and studying under renowned artist Xu Bing, she became fascinated by Chinese folklore and incorporates ideas from the Daoist philosophies of Zhuangzi in her work that includes several photographs, sculptures, and film installations.

During her stay at Millers Falls Art Bridge, Geng began to make connections between her surrounding environment and the pipes and pathways of life described in Zhuangzhi’s writings and her works feature openings and gaps in some way or another. Her sculptures are made from plaster, wood, and iron and contain several holes and passages with a surface that’s arched to form a bridge or an opening.

Borrowing an Easterly Wind No. 2 by Geng Xue

Geng illustrates this same concept with her photographs, some of which feature the streams and rivers passing through the trees of the forest allowing the water to pass through.

Another striking image to convey this notion is an aerial shot of the spot where Manhattan’s twin towers once stood, powerfully illustrating the gaping hole replaced with water flowing into the small square opening in the center.

Ying Zhu is a multimedia artist who has studied in both China and the U.S. and examines Western culture with an Eastern perspective. Her portion of the show is titled Live Like An Astronaut, which includes installations that overturn conventional notions of sight and sound, as though living in outer space as the title suggests.

One fascinating part of the show is an alluring pattern of Styrofoam covering half the floor where visitors are invited to walk along wearing plastic slippers as they enjoy the soft surface underneath their feet and occasionally stepping on pieces of foam that may pop up. The surrounding walls are decorated with small, circular mirrors, rocks, and other objects to really capture the notion of living like an astronaut as the title of the show suggests. Other intriguing works include a set of acrylic pieces called Space Tears that depict an eye shedding a rather large tear perhaps reflecting the loneliness of being away from a familiar environment. The first piece illustrates a traditional teardrop, while the second piece features the teardrop taking on a more curved shape.

At the Klein Sun Gallery, 525 W. 25th St., through Sept. 5. The gallery is open Mon.—Sat. from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.

French bistro remains a classic Midtown East staple 35 years on

Even in a city like New York where there are numerous new, trendy restaurants popping up practically everywhere you turn, there are still several classic favorites that have stood the test of time. One of these restaurants, La Mediterranee, is a lovely French bistro and piano bar in East Midtown, which opened in the summer of 1980.

For the past 35 years, loyal patrons have enjoyed the old-fashioned atmosphere that truly captures the essence of the French Riviera with the seaside paintings that grace the thickly plastered walls, the harmonious piano music, and palatable cuisine.

Live jazz music is offered every night with regular house musician Harold John performing most nights during the week. Some guest musicians have included Tony Middleton, Joe Alterman, and Laura Angyal among others.

The happy hour, which lasts from noon until 8 p.m. includes $5.00 Chilean Merlot, Cabernet, and Chardonnay as well as Champagne, Sangrias, Mimosas, and Bloody Marys. Some of the best appetizers include the French onion soup topped with Swiss cheese, and Escargots de Bourgone with garlic herb and pernod butter. 

La Mediterranee also offers Sunday brunch which includes Belgian waffles, chicken and mushroom crepes, and a wide variety of omelets including the Classic Eggs Benedict, the Smoked Salmon Benedict, or the Maryland Crab Cake Benedict among others. Delectable sandwiches include the Croque Monsieur consisting of ham and cheese with béchamel sauce and served with pommes frites, or the Croque Madame which is the same type of sandwich plus an egg on top.

Enjoyable pasta dishes include Lobster Ravioli with shallots, white wine and saffron cream sauce, Potato Gnocchi with sun-dried tomatoes in a fresh pesto sauce, and Fettuccine Primavera with fresh vegetables and roasted tomato sauce. Some of the finest fish entrees include the Pan Roasted Atlantic Salmon with lentils, asparagus and Dijon mustard, or the Bouillabaisse a'la Mediterranée which is a collection of assorted seafood cooked in a Pernod lobster broth with saffron served with croutons and rouille.

Classic meat dishes include Classic Beef Bourguignon with beef in red wine served with vegetables, onions, and mushrooms, Coq Au Vin with chicken in red wine with onions and vegetables, and Roast Pork Tenderloin served with sautéed spinach and garlic mashed potatoes in Calvados sauce.

And last but certainly not least, some mouthwatering desserts include Chocolate Mousse, Crème Brulee, Cheesecake, Souffle, and assorted ice cream and sorbet.

 La Mediterranee, 947 Second Ave. (at 50th St.) (212) 755-4155.

Marsha Doran presents 'Fragmented Symbols' at Chelsea gallery show

The Blue Mountain Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a series of works by Marsha Doran for an exhibition titled Fragmented Symbols. For this show, Doran unveils mixed media abstract pieces consisting of materials such as dress patterns, tissue paper, glue, acrylic paint, pencil, paper, marker, and ink.

Doran’s subjects touch on religion and mythology by depicting various symbols like crosses, stars, or flowers. She starts out by creating sketches of these symbols which she dismantles, and then rearranges them so that they’re presented in a new manner that still honors their underlying meaning.

For instance, one piece titled Crosses features several images of the iconic symbol of Catholicism arranged haphazardly with red, gold, and white paint resembling fire to illustrate the notion of crosses being burned. Snippets of text are blended in reading messages such as “We all have our crosses to bear, we carry them heavily out of love for our brothers in arms.”

Similarly, Star of David includes images of the iconic symbol of Judaism that overlap and covered primarily in white paint with touches of blue and gold. In the center of the painting is a small, clearly outlined navy blue box with a clear image of the star. In addition, there are snippets of text embedded in the piece including a dictionary definition of the Star of David.

Lotus by Marsha Doran

Another work titled Lotus depicts the legendary plant which can be found in many corners of the globe with in numerous forms, but the classic Lotus flowers have pink and white leaves that are shaped like a bowl with a yellow center. Those lotuses are native to Asia and serves as a symbol to Hindu and Buddhist religions to represent reincarnation and divine beauty.

Marsha Doran studied at Western Connecticut State University where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree with honors in Studio art and Painting before earning her Master’s degree of Fine Arts in Painting from Boston University. She has also studied at SUNY Purchase in New York as well as at the Vermont Studio Center. She lives in Connecticut and has exhibited her work throughout the New England and New York area. Many of her paintings have been purchased into private collections, both nationally and internationally.

At The Blue Mountain Gallery, 530 W. 25th St., through Aug. 18. The gallery is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m.