Tuesday, March 15, 2016

April Flowers at Queens College




 Announcement for an upcoming show I have a painting in:


On view from April 4th through April 29th, 2016
Opening Reception: Saturday, April 9th, 2 to 4pm

“April Flowers,” a group exhibition at the Queens College Art Center, presents floral-themed artworks—paintings and sculptures full of the joys of spring—by 22 artists.

From the vegetal patterns of Islamic tile design to Warhol’s iconic silkscreens of hibiscus blossoms, flowers have long served as artistic inspiration. With a range of color as dazzling as any artist’s palette, they epitomize brevity and beauty. Dutch Golden Age “vanitas” canvases often included flowers—bud, bloom and decay—to symbolize the transience of human existence. Manet’s poignant paintings of bouquets brought to his bedside by friends during his final months are celebrations of life. As he suffered from the side effects of syphilis, the Impressionist painter was revived by flower arrangements, remarking, “I would like to paint them all.”

As the azalea bushes and cherry trees bloom across the Queens College Campus, this exhibit aspires to amplify the sense of renewal and optimism of springtime. The 22 artists in “April Flowers” vary in style, but are united by an ebullient approach to their subject matter.

As Tony Bennett sings:

Beneath the deepest snows
The secret of a rose
Is merely that it knows
You must believe in spring

Xico Greenwald, 2016


EXHIBITING ARTISTS:

Alix Bailey
Janice Biala
Joe Brainard
Simon Carr
Ryan Cobourn
Peter Colquhoun
Deborah Freedman
Jane Freilicher
Xico Greenwald
Eric Holzman
Ginger Levant
Aubrey Levinthal
Ying Li
Tine Lundsfryd
Gerben Mulder
Jan Müller
Victor Pesce
Thaddeus Radell
Jessica Ramirez
Paul Resika
Edith Schloss
Saskia Sutherland

Sunday, March 6, 2016

Sunday Pick: Ignacio Iturria

El Mago, 2013, a/t, 130 x 160 cms (Private Collection, Santo Domingo)

  n.d., oil on canvas, 80 x 70 cm



El Casamiento, n.d. oil on canvas

To look at the bizarre and fantastic paintings of Ignacio Iturria (b. 1949, Uruguay) is to enter his world.  These are the stuff of dreams and occasionally nightmares, based in the reality of blinding light and convincing shadow.  Improbable scenes made possible, as the scale of things are free to slide.