Now on view at Equity Gallery is the 2022 annual New York Artists Equity Members Invitational Exhibition. Equity Gallery is the physical exhibition space of the New York Artists Equity Association (NYAE).
A genuine and organic appearance of a collective with shared aspirations is rare and never random. In this instance, no three artists could have come from more divergent backgrounds and yet their work converses on an intimate and formalist level with adjoining narratives and motives to be explored fore with.
“What happens when an artist confronts staggering natural beauty that upends her studio practice?… read more”
Since the beginning of mankind’s creative endeavors, the human figure has been employed as a conduit to convey complex narratives and capture sweeping emotions, as well as act as a visual shorthand to examine latent, deeply ingrained cultural belief systems. The manner in which a body is depicted and, perhaps more importantly, is intended to be viewed within a specific cultural context and time period is incredibly revealing. The subjects within worthy portraiture can be imbued with gravitas and great significance, but yet can inspire complete, total empathy.
Ever since stressed-out 19th century Parisian artists decamped to the countryside to escape the incessant demands and soul-sucking competition of their careers, painters have banded together and sought camaraderie in the refuge of nature. In hindsight, we have come to identify those regenerative forays into the wild not so much as pauses but pivots giving rise to stylistic invention.
Equity is currently hosting a show of works by three artists that privilege collage as their overriding tool of expression. The results are indeed compelling--both because the artists are astute practitioners of the media and because the media speaks directly to the times we live in.
If Holliday’s grandly baroque abstractions are fully realized operas….his monotypes are purified hymnals.
I recall, as if it were a dream, a visit long ago to the Musée Picasso in Paris during a summer study aboard program (was there ever such a thing).
