A Film Review

Based on Nico Walker’s 2018 novel of the same name, Cherry drops viewers into a series of flashpoints that emerge from one man’s return to the center of the opioid crisis in Cleveland, Ohio. Starring Tom Holland as Cherry, Ciara Bravo as Emily and directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, this film details a young man’s plight from the status of a distinguished, wartime soldier to that of a hopeless drug addict.

The film begins with an armed bank robbery that quickly journeys back in time to follow Cherry and Emily as they navigate high school, then…

Set in the late 1940s, The United States vs. Billie Holiday begins in the quiet offices of journalist Reginald Lord Devine (played by Leslie Jordan) who interviews Billie Holiday (played by Andra Day) about her song “Strange Fruit” that had remained controversial from the start due to its slow-sung details of a lynching. The singer’s response to Devine’s inquiries takes the form of a series of recollections that become the substance of this film, beginning with Holiday’s 1939 performance at New York’s infamous Cafe Society, when “Strange Fruit” made its initial debut. If Holiday had written and performed her tune…

Last Summer as New York City began re-opening after a three-month lockdown, the Massey Klein Gallery quietly opened “Elemental” a two-person exhibition that presented a selection of new black, marble sculptures by Claire Lieberman: Bunny Bomb (2020), Butterfly Machine Gun (2020), Fluffy (2020) and Flower — Andy Warhol. (2020). Lieberman’s work has appeared frequently in New York City for over a decade, but primarily in group exhibitions, and most recently in a 2017 show at the Massey Lyuben Gallery titled “UDBO Playground”. Her sculptures look like hybrids of feminine desires with a nondescript, aggressive subtext — a reflection of her…

By the Summer of 2020, the quarantine over New York City became the dominant theme of everyday life. The rapid spread of disease was accompanied by protests calling for social justice as well as an end to misrepresentations of monumentality. The urban fabric of New York City and its ephemeral, fleeting nature was under a re-examination that remains in process. During this time five books in limited edition were published, creating not only a basis for new starting points, but also renewing the tangible role of constructive critique.

The overwhelming emptiness that enveloped the streets of New York City appear…

When Experience Was Art

Just south of Paris on October 19th, 1960 Yves Klein and his wife visited the suburb of Fontenay-aux-Roses. It was a slightly overcast day and the Kleins were meeting with friends at 5 rue Gentil-Bernard in order to coordinate the artist’s most stunning yet perplexing act of art to date. Pictures were taken by the artist’s two most-admired photographers, John Kender and Harry Shunk. Soon after, Kender and Shunk provided Klein with a combination of their photographs that took the form of one stunning print measuring about 10” x 7”.

I was standing at my kitchen sink on Saturday morning when a bright red color caught the corner of my eye. It was a sticker on the bottle of dish soap that read, “ATTACKS” in capital letters. I looked at it again because the term seemed like quite an affront, given the current context that has caused us to shelter-in-place.

“ATTACKS” remained on my mind throughout the day, even while traveling to an in-person studio visit — the first in many months — to see new tapestries by Annette Cords. Cords’ studio is in Greenpoint, Brooklyn and her textiles bear…

a cinematic portrait of Hilma af Klint

Beyond the Visible: Hilma af Klint, directed by Halina Dyrschka, is a thorough, vivid portrait of a reclusive artist whose legacy has not been well represented due to the events of early 20th-century Western history. Born in 1862, the artist grew up at a time when secularism was still new to Europe. Throughout her life, af Klint spent very limited amounts of time in artistically vibrant centers such as London and Paris. Instead, the beautiful rural landscape of Sweden took up the majority of her time.

While this film takes viewers to these…

While galleries, museums and art fairs have retreated into the depth of the virtual world, the artist’s studio is becoming a far more significant platform than before. As we find ourselves confined to home, we are also much closer to genuine reasoning — something that is a rare form to find during a fast-paced daily life.

A few weeks after New York State issued an order for shelter-in-place along with the closure of non-essential businesses, Monya Rowe Gallery launched a solo exhibition of 8 new paintings by Gretchen Scherer titled Love Letters that show empty museum interiors with walls covered…