OPENING TONIGHT!

Tonight, the group show "Narrative Thread" opens at Lyons Wier Ortt Gallery in Chelsea from 6-9. I am thrilled to be included in the show, and can't wait to see it!

Last night, checked out "ImMaterial" at the Black & White Gallery. The use of clothing in contemporary art is something I have done extensive research on for my own work, and this was a provocative show.

Derick Melander's work was cleverly incorporated into the architecture of the space, and each piece in the show was given a respectful and necessary amount of room, making for a more museum-like installation, something this viewer truly appreciates.

Orly Cogan had a fantastic installation that incorporated some of the embroidered found textiles she is known for, but her vision has expanded and explodes across the walls with thread drawings connecting found textile bits and newly created elements... the effect is whimsical, as the viewer finds delightful surprises while following threads across the walls.

I was also blown away by Tamara Kostianovsky's work, particularly her large piece, a carcass constructed of found clothing hanging from a meat hook. The color selection, as precise as any painter, and the tortured quality of the ripped, stretched, stuffed clothing and coarse stitching creates a powerful presence, and an ironic read on the term "stuffed animal".

I have always liked Jean Shin's clothing pieces (we will both be in the Re-Addressing Identities show at the Katonah Museum this summer), but had never seen the shoes pieces, which have an uncanny quality of being simultaneously familiar and unrecognizable.