June, 2014 | Beverly Shipko, Artist

Grounds for Sculpture – Seward Johnson Retrospective

June 17, 2014 by Beverly

A picture is worth a thousand words in this instance. See for yourself and see why I am so looking forward to the “Seward Johnson: The Retrospective”, featuring more than 287 of works at the Grounds for Sculpture in Trenton, Jersey, which runs through September 21st, 2014. Here is a sampling of the permanent collection from a recent visit.

Our version of Munch’s “The Scream”

Lunch with my new friends in Renoir’s “Boating Party”

More food in Edouard Manet’s Le Dejeuner sur l’herbe.

Jay waiving from Monet’s “Garden at Sainte-Addresse” – the scale of which is mind-boggling.

Finally, a suitcase my husband can’t lift in Grant Wood’s “American Gothic”

With even more Johnson sculptures than ever before in three new indoor shows, this is going to be a spectacular day! The art historian in me gets a big kick out of seeing his re-interpretation of so many iconic images – an experience I that I highly recommend to all of you.

This will be a show with something for everyone. Savor every minute of it!

The Ultimate Obsession in Serial Imagery

June 10, 2014 by Beverly

Since I am fascinated by the concept of serial imagery, I went to see Peter Dreher’s show at the the Koenig & Clinton Gallery in Chelsea. I am pleased to tell you that I loved this show, felt it rightfully earned its star status in the New York Times, and am still thinking about it long after the show came down.

It was a quiet and subtle show but somehow very effective and powerful in its simplicity. The name of the show, “Day by Day, Good Day”, is rooted in Zen Buddhism’s meditative and contemplative approach to the world and everything in it. For over 40 years, Dreher painted over 5,000 glasses at different times of day, and 150 of them were shown here. Each work in the series is exquisitely painted.

When I entered the exhibit, I went right for the wall of glasses above. My daughter, Bonnie, on the other hand, let the row of glasses draw her around the room.

Some are painted during the day, some at night. This one captures an intriguing reflection that made me think of sunset.

Markedly different in tonality, this group was painted at night.

If you look closely above the glass, you can see how the artist scratched a unique code into the wet oil paint on every canvas.

Dreher himself says that painting the glass “is the only place and the only hours in my life when I really feel quiet. Maybe I don’t make the impression of being unquiet, but I am.” While I agree with him, I also felt really quiet and present while experiencing this show, which is maybe what made it such a gift.

What do you think?

OK Harris Works of Art – The End of an Era

June 5, 2014 by Beverly

When I was in Soho last week, I was feeling a little sad and nostalgic because OK Harris had closed after 45 years. I missed my old routine including a regular stop at OK Harris, either to drop off new work or simply to view the five compelling solo exhibits which were typically mounted throughout the year in this huge space – a forerunner to the Chelsea museum-galleries. When I brought my family with me, everyone always found something that appealed to them. I particularly loved seeing the stable of food artists, such as Ralph Goings.

This probably shouldn’t have surprised me since I attended the 2012 memorial service of Ivan Karp, the founder and director. What a marvelous tribute it was to Ivan, a charismatic person and giant in the art world! Ivan helped launch the careers of pop artist such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, and Robert Rauschenberg as co-director of Leo Castelli Gallery from 1959-1969. Then Ivan launched his own gallery in SoHo , the first one on West Broadway. Ivan continued to uncover and mentor new artists throughout his entire career, and I am proud to say that I was one of them.

OK Harris was at the forefront of the Photo Realist movement, and was one of the first galleries to exhibit the work of Duane Hanson, one of my all time favorite sculptors. I remember the first time my daughter, Laura, confronted one of Hanson’s guards posted in the gallery.

The memorial service was packed full of video clips and interviews, one of my favorites showing Ivan and Andy Warhol having a great time. Another memorable moment was when Jim Zagat gave Ivan, a connoisseur of food and wine, credit for suggesting the concept of a restaurant guide at dinner one night. To my delight, I just found the service online.

The visual introducing the memorial service show silhouettes of Ivan smoking his ever-present cigar. OK Harris was probably the only art gallery with a cigar store in it. In fact, I first introduced myself to Ivan in the cigar store in 2001, which led to my first show with the gallery – and I still think of Ivan every time I see someone smoking a cigar. The details of that first show will be the subject of a future post.

For now, I want to express my appreciation to Ivan, Ethan, and Marilyn Karp, and the rest of the OK Harris team, especially to Suzanne Kreps and Rick Witter, as well as Ana Menezes and Amy Fishman, for their friendship and support for over a decade. I have nothing but good things to say about all of you, the extremely high quality of the numerous OK Harris shows that I savored through the years, and the professionalism of the gallery – of which I was honored to be a part.

Thank you, OK Harris!

Irresistible Chocolate Factory in Chelsea

June 1, 2014 by Beverly

Given my sweet tooth, love of all things chocolate, and previous job as an Account Executive on the M&M Mars Account, I couldn’t resist going to this show featuring a recreation of the Columbina Chocolate Factory at the David Zwirner Gallery in Chelsea. The artist, Oscar Murillo, collaborated with Colombina, one of the premier food companies in his native Columbia, to make this happen calling this exhibition “A Mercantile Novel”.

When my daughter Bonnie and I walked in, it smelled and looked like the M&M Mars candy factory I used to visit in Hacketstown, NJ. Bonnie looked very happy, perhaps pleased that we were looking at REAL chocolate rather than paintings of chocolate!

This is an exhibit where you can touch and participate. Tens of thousands of candies are being produced and given away for free at the gallery and Columbina, certainly a way to get their name out there to American consumers. Visitors and volunteers are invited to take smiley-faced packages of chocolates and give them to people throughout the five boroughs, embracing the diversity of NYC communities. A part of me loved the unexpected novelty of this show, and the other part felt like I was participating in one giant advertisement for the company.

While we were visiting the gallery, we ran into a tour of smiling and engaged participants. Unfortunately we arrived near the very end and missed the commentary. At home, I found an interesting UK article showcasing photos of the 13 Columbian factory workers who were brought over for the exhibition.

At the end of the tour, the guide offered to take photos with the visitors. Of course, I had to take him up on the generous offer… Later on, I found out he was Jerry Salz, the esteemed art critic for New York Magazine (whose reviews I has read religiously through the years) and Pulitzer Prize winner.

When he asked me who I was, I told him I was Beverly, the dessert painter, and showed him a postcard. He looked at it, threw up his hands, and exclaimed, “Just accept this show! Accept it!”. I really wasn’t sure what he meant. How do you interpret this?

Attention all chocoholics: You can still stop by and get your own chocolate snacks through June 14th, 2014. Enjoy!