During Art Basel, Gasgosian and Jeffrey Deitch Present the Group Show in the Miami Design District
Albert Oehlen, “Ömega Man 2,” 2021, 63 x 94 1/2 in., oil and lacquer on canvas; © Albert Oehlen, photo by Stefan Rohner, courtesy of Gagosian.
On December 5 in Miami, for the momentous occasion of Art Basel, Gagosian and Jeffrey Deitch together unveil the eight annual group presentation of “Forms,” on view through December 10 in the Miami Design District at 35 NE 40th Street. The riveting exhibition pushes past the formal limits of abstraction and figuration, providing space within the modern art scene for enigmatic alternatives. Luminaries including Judy Chicago, Nari Ward, Carol Bove, Theaster Gates, Tauba Auerbach, Lauren Halsey, Li Shurui, Albert Oehlen, and Peter Nagy infuse objects and crafts with soulful artistry, while offering abstract paintings and visual works which evoke the timeless magic of objects and the sensuality of human shapes.
Alexandria Smith, “Mumbo Jumbo,” 2023, 48 x 60 in., mixed media on three-dimensional wood assemblage; © Alexandria Smith, photo by Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd., courtesy of Gagosian.
Bita Fayyazi, “Beautiful Creatures,” 2023, 121 1/4 x 17 3/8 x 11 7/8 in., weaving yarn, throw-away yarn (recycled), broken ceramics, and metal wire; © Bita Fayyazi, courtesy of the artist, Dastan Gallery, and Gagosian.
Albert Oehlen and Theaster Gates Explore Humanity in Painting and Sculpture
Oehlen’s Ömega Man series garners inspiration from the 1971 science fiction film The Omega Man and the poignant themes of biological warfare and disastrous scientific progress. Omega Man 2 (2021) suggests the human form in murky colorways, against an unsettling yellow background, and Untitled (2022) probes the shape in potent cast aluminum. Gates’s THIS WAY (2021) utilizes reclaimed wooden floorboards to revisit past action, and continues this exploration of human gesture and ceremony in the ceramic Vessel #24 (2020).
Urs Fischer, “Dew,” 2023, 96 x 76 3/4 in., aluminum composite panel, aluminum honeycomb, polyurethane adhesive, epoxy primer, gesso, solvent-based screen printing paint, and water-based screen printing paint; © Urs Fischer, photo by Ulrich Ghezzi, courtesy of the artist and Gagosian.
Giuseppe Penone, “Impronte di luce,” 2023, 72 1/8 x 72 1/8 in., oil on canvas; © Archivio Penone, photo by Ruggero Penone, courtesy of the studio and Gagosian.
Carol Bove and Giuseppe Penone Utilize Unique Materials for Transcendent Effect
In Sinister Sappy Seeping (2023), Bove’s deft practice of “collage sculpture” shapes stainless steel and urethane paint into a supple and surreal human figure at rest, while Soul Arch Fixed (2021) by Ward sits a copper enhanced surfboard atop a vintage Harlem church pew wrapped in firehose, layering crucifix imagery with the iconic “Soul arch” shape of the laid back surfer. Giuseppe Penone uses his own hand as both instrument and subject in Impronte di luce (2023), creating colorful imprints which are both familiar and dreamlike.
Nari Ward, “Soul Arch Fixed,” 2021, 115 x 39 x 20 in., copper covered found surfboard and firehose, and covered found church pew; © Nari Ward, photo by Joshua White, courtesy of the artist, Jeffrey Deitch, and Gagosian.
Sascha Braunig, “Backbone,” 2016, 54 x 22 in., oil on linen over panel; © Sascha Braunig, courtesy of the artist and Jeffrey Deitch.
