Extended [through March 23]
ALFRED NEUMAYR: MYTHICAL CREATURES
To Alfred Neumayr nothingness is the origin. It can be everything at once, like the Nirvana, a simple object, or the universe, nobody knows. But it is not to be confused with nothing. To him, it is all about movement, the artistic activity itself. The resulting images resemble geographical formations, outer space, fantasy worlds, or Greek mythological creatures.
Neumayr was born in Tulln (Lower Austria) in 1958. He works primarily with India ink or pencil—which he applies and scratches out, thins down or mixes. His modus operandi is reminiscent of surrealist automatism: starting at a random point and letting his hand glide without restraint until the innumerable lines reveal a theme that he then elaborates on. Minute details appear as figures or faces; the various thicknesses of his pen strokes and the rhythmic structures into which they are linked make his pictures come alive.
NEWS
INDEPENDENT ART FAIR
NEW YORK, 2019
March 7 – 10
For the 2019 Independent Art Fair in New York City, Ricco/Maresca Gallery will participate with a one-person booth featuring the work of contemporary artist Gil Batle—the first to be mounted at any art fair.
The gallery’s presentation will explore Batle’s diverse forms of visual storytelling, juxtaposed to each other to create a master narrative that dwells on the idea of a universal prison. The booth will revolve around a newly conceived work on paper, measuring 48” x 74″ and rendered on ink and graphite. The largest and most ambitious Batle has ever produced, this horizontal panel describes a dystopian landscape condensing real and imagined geographies. The central structure in the composition depicts a monumental prison island reminiscent of Alcatraz. The cells that the viewer is allowed to see within it are, in turn, individually represented in a series of small meticulous drawings that will also be included. In addition to this selection of works on paper, the booth will include five new, never-seen ostrich egg bas relief sculptures (for which the artist is best known) portraying scenes and subjects from his life behind bars.
“Fragile”
A Portrait of Gil Batle
PRESS
NOTEWORTHY
“With collectors and museums clamoring for outsider art, what is driving the appeal, especially when so many millennials are still coveting sleek contemporary art?”
Read the full article in Architectural Digest
“The government shutdown wasn’t going to stop Bill Traylor. The man survived slavery, the Civil War, Reconstruction, Jim Crow, illiteracy, homelessness and two world wars.”
Read the full article in Forbes
Traylor’s “Woman Pointing at Man with Cane” set the world record for the artist (USD $396,500) in last month’s Outsider and Vernacular Art sale at Christie’s.
ARTIST UNKNOWN
RENALDO KUHLER
Kuhler (1931 – 2013) was a scientific illustrator of natural history specimens for 30 years. Unbeknownst to family, friends, and co-workers, Kuhler was also a prolific self-taught artist. In 1948 he invented an imaginary country he called Rocaterrania and secretly illustrated the nation’s history for more than 60 years.
Kuhler’s life and work are the subjects of a documentary film, “Rocaterrania” (2009), and a book, “The Secret World of Renaldo Kuhler” (Blast Books, New York), both by Brett Ingram, director of the Renaldo Kuhler Archive.