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.