nyc art scene

Opens Tonight, 6-9p:

“Together”
 Allison Maletz

Christopher Henry Gallery, 127 Elizabeth St., NYC

New York-based painter Maletz transforms the temporal objectivity of her source photographs and brings them into a protected present, enabling them to reach to a wider sphere of imagination beyond the totality of their original physical and emotional experience. - thru April 13

Just Opened:

“Empire Loop”
 Kysa Johnson

Morgan Lehman Gallery, 535 W22nd St., NYC

In her signature style, Kysa Johnson employs microscopic patterns found in nature blown up to an extreme scale to build universal worlds. In Empire Loop, the artist enlarges subatomic decay patterns (the signature pathways that unstable particles travel along when they decay and transform into other subatomic particles) to depict a physical reality that is naturally invisible to the naked eye. By rendering these essential patterns in chalk, ink and watercolor on panel, Johnson removes the subject from a purely scientific context and introduces it into the arena of visual culture. - thru Mar 23

Recently Opened:

“Palimpsest III”
 Russell Nachman

LMAKprojects, 139 Eldridge St., NYC

large format watercolors on paper. “Nachman’s meditation on the waning days of western metaphysics via the art historical trope of the harlequin—re-imagined as a contemporary, Black Metal-music reveler… Using structures of iconic, Christian painting and illuminated, prayer manuscripts the work creates a contrast of reverence and irreverence.” - thru March 24

Opens Thurs, July 12, 6-8p:

“Contemporary Watercolor”
 curated by Veronica Roberts

Morgan Lehman Gallery, 535 W22nd St., NYC

30 artist group show. Watercolor has been saddled with a bad rap. It hasn’t even earned the status of being uncool enough to be cool. With its history as a preferred medium of amateur painters, watercolor is all too easily overlooked or disparaged for its frequent association with trivial subjects and saccharine clichés. This exhibition features a group of diverse artists from around the country and abroad who engage the medium in varied, sometimes political ways that move beyond—and often take pleasure in subverting—watercolor’s traditional ties to subjects like flowers and ‘plein air’ landscapes.  - Aug 17th

Just Opened:

“Concrete Memories”
 Sirikul Pattachote

Roger Smith Hotel, 501 Lexington Ave., NYC (at 47th St.)

Thailand-born, New York based painter Sirikul Pattachote’s exhibition of 16 beautiful and relevant contemporary watercolors. “Sirikul’s artwork is inspired by nature, where she draws upon memories and experiences of her surroundings in everyday life. The ephemeral quality of life and matter is a central theme in her work. Through her paintings, she attempts to record and preserve certain memories and impressions that highlight the potential good that exists in everyone and everything.” Presented by the Thai Artist Alliance. - thru Aug 31

Opens Today, May 1:

”Encyclopedia of Drawing, 1964 - 2012”
 Ellen Phelan

Gasser & Grunert, 524 W19th St., NYC

the first major survey of Ellen Phelan’s works on paper from 1964 to the present, featuring more than 130 works on paper in a wide range of media including oil, watercolor, pastel and gouache, as well as wax, stencil rubbings, sumi ink, cut and folded pieces. - thru June 2

Opens Thurs, Apr 12, 6-8p:

Richard Garrison

RHV Fine Art, 683 6th Ave Brooklyn, NY [map]

Richard Garrison analyzes ubiquitous materials and objects from the suburban American landscape, such as Sunday newspaper sale circulars, drive-thru window menu color schemes and product packaging. Through a process of careful scientific-like scrutiny Garrison dissects and restructures the color schemes of common everyday objects and creates Minimalist compositions that expose the beauty in the banal. This deconstruction of quotidian objects and experience is a personal, non-judgmental, examination of the visual, emotional and conceptual aspects of consumerism. - thru May 20