Alexis Rockman’s “Bronx Zoo” (2012-2013, oil on wood). 84 x 168 inches (213,4 x 427 cm) overall. On view at Sperone Westwater, through Nov. 2.
Surreal Bronx, Staten Island nostalgia, street culture & unfamiliar states
ALEXIS ROCKMAN: RUBICON
For almost three decades, Rockman has depicted a darkly surreal vision of the collision between civilization and nature. His new paintings and watercolors continue to draw on apocalyptic scenarios while remaining rich in meticulous scientific detail. The exhibition features two epic paintings thematically focused on New York City, where the artist was born in 1962 and has lived ever since. One of these works depicts an anarchistic scene amid the imagined ruins of the Bronx Zoo, which was founded in 1899.
Through Nov. 2, at Sperone Westwater (257 Bowery, btw. Stanton & Houston Sts.). Hours: Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. Call 212-999-7337 or visit speronewestwater.com.
CHRISTINE OSINSKI: FROM STATEN ISLAND
Mostly taken during the 1980s, Osinski’s black and white photographs offer an unusually nostalgic view of the borough. Scenes range from a woman cutting grass on Naughton Avenue to men fixing a house near the Staten Island Mall. These kind of themes might be mundane — but captured by Osinski’s lense, they become surprisingly intriguing. Domestic outdoor gatherings of children in the street, or of grown ups in a local amusement park describe a life that in its simplicity promises to be soothing and desirable.
Through Oct. 27, at Sasha Wolf Gallery (70 Orchard St., btw. Broome & Grand Sts.). Hours: Wed.-Sun., 12-6pm. Call 212-925-0025 or visit sashawolf.com.
Barry McGee: Untitled, 2005-13 (400 elements: ink, graphite, acrylic, screenprint, photographs on paper, found objects and frames; 16 feet x 22 feet 6 inches x 55 inches, 192 x 270 x 55 inches; 487.7 x 685.8 x 139.7 centimeters). On view at Cheim & Read through Oct. 26.
BARRY McGEE
Born in 1966, McGee was raised in San Francisco, where he studied painting and printmaking. His distinctly graphic works fuse a variety of influences, such as graffiti and American folk art. Evocative of urban street culture, they celebrate the diversity of neighborhood communities and critique consumerist culture, as well as commercialism. Rejecting billboard advertisements and the concept of chain stores, McGee finds inspiration in the seeming randomness of Internet pictures. Part anarchy and part collaboration, his installations become immersive environments that draw the audience’s attention through a whirlwind of images.
Through Oct. 26, at Cheim & Read (547 W. 25th St., btw. 10th & 11th Sts.). Hours: Tues.-Sat., 10am-6pm. Call 212-242-7727 or visit cheimread.com.
An installation shot from Nicole Cherubini’s “in and out of weeks” — on view at Tracy Williams, Ltd. through Oct. 6.
NICOLE CHERUBINI
Cherubini’s first solo exhibition with the gallery (“in and out of weeks”) attempts to collapse the boundaries between movement, space, process and time. By juxtaposing rigid, geometric forms with texturally voluptuous shapes, her floor-based and wall-mounted sculptures explore the balance and dissonance between surface and ornament, object and support. Overall they challenge our notions of time and place, attempting to establish an unfamiliar state.
Through Oct. 26, at Tracy Williams, Ltd. (521 W. 23rd St., btw. 10th & 11th Aves.). Hours: Tues.-Sat., 11am-6pm. Call 212-229-2757 or visit tracywilliamsltd.com.
— BY STEPHANIE BUHMANN
