Trustworthy Art

Sometimes it's all about trust, as the group in the picture were experimenting with in Madison Square Park the other night -- that's what they told us anyway, after requesting that I not take pictures. Why don't you trust me? The reason I visited the park was to see Jessica Stockholder's new installation Flooded Chambers Maid, part of the Madison Square Art projects. A while back I posted pictures of Tadashi Kawamata's tree houses -- as you can see, there is always a surprise in the park.

So much art to see these days and so little time to post about it! Well, here goes a quick run through and more to follow, trust me. A favorite of mine and judging from responses to my Flickr photos of the opening reception, Alice Neel: Selected Works at David Zwirner is the show not to miss in Chelsea right now. In addition the concurrent show at Zwirner Wirth on 69th Street, which I've yet to see, is Nudes of the 1930's.

A striking comparison to the Neels are Chantal Joffe's latest paintings, showing at Cheim & Read: both painters spare nothing to get to the truth -- unsettling, gritty, and wonderful.

Back in Baltimore, a place I've not spent much time in lately, make your way over to School 33, for Masked, a twelve-woman artist exhibit exploring concealment, secrecy, and self identity. It's a strong show, one of the best 33 has put on in some time.

Also in Baltimore Paperwork Gallery's latest exhibit, Rebound, features the work of Rudy Shepherd and Valeska Maria Populoh. Shepherd delves into the lives of criminals and victims of crime through portraiture. Portraits of both the victim and perpetrator, but their true identity is not made clear. We only see them as individuals, not through the image of headlines. Populoh is a performance artist and teacher, and Baltimore Rescue Society, her latest work, explores the underbelly of serving those in the community in need, in this instance through her hand-sewn costumes. Unfortunately, Paperwork has a limited viewing schedule -- contact them for more details and see my Flickr page for more images.