Jim Shaw: The End is Near

“Jim Shaw: The End is Near” at the New Museum is an absorbing journey through the artist’s expansive repertoire. Although Shaw has become quite influential over the last 30 years, specifically in the Los Angeles art scene, this is the first New York survey exhibition of his work. Taking up three floors of the museum, the exhibition includes Shaw’s personal collection of thrift store paintings, comic books, religious iconography, and a large installation of painted theatrical backdrops that confirm the wide range of his work and points of inspiration. Another confirmation would be the strange contrast from the wall dedicated to his sexually explicit “Dream Drawing” series, to reimagined “Famous Monsters” magazine covers and the surrealist triptych “Seven Deadly Sins.” Viewers can expect to be shocked and confused but all the while captivated by Shaw’s cultural, political, religious, and fantastical motivation.