Illuminated Moments, Venice & Havana: Lee Essex Doyle

I had the opportunity to meet artist Lee Essex Doyle during a trip to Cuba in 2013. "Inspired by her travels, Lee Essex Doyle's latest series of watercolors reflects the vibrant light of two cities, Venice and Havana. These luminous paintings capture quiet moments awash with light, delicately reflected and refracted through stained glass, metal gates, and jewel-like lanterns." Childs Gallery, Boston
Courtyard, Pillazo Grimani, Venice by Lee Essex Doyle at CHILDS GALLERY, Boston
Opening January 22nd, reception 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Jean-Michel Basquiat Drawing - Work from the Schorr Family Collection, at Acquavella Galleries

Jean-Michel Basquiat, "Untitled (Scales of Justice)", 1982, Acrylic and oil paintstick on paper, 30 x 22 1/4 inches (75 x 56.5 cm), The Schorr Family Collection, Art Ⓒ The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat / ADAGP, Paris / ARS, New York 2014
Jean-Michel Basquiat Drawing - Work from the Schorr Family Collection, is on view at Acquavella Galleries this spring, through June 13th. 18 East 79th Street. The gallery hours are Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.




MIT Museum's group exhibition "5,000 Moving Parts" includes Anne Lilly

This fall I had the opportunity to experience Lilly's newest sculpture, To Conjugate, in the exhibition "5000 Moving Parts" at the MIT Museum, curated by Laura Knott. The show opened November 21st and will run for one year. It's a great show of kinetic art with sculptures by Arthur Ganson, John Douglas Powers, and Rafael Lozano-Hemmer.
"Anne Lilly has for years made pristine stainless steel sculptures, often featuring several rods connected to gears. They look like machines until they start to dance, tilting and circling in unexpected concert. Two such smaller pieces are here, including one, “To Caress,” which sweetly tickles your hand with swaying fronds of metal. But her new, large-scale interactive work, “To Conjugate,” takes her in new directions.
You’ll need a partner for this one. That grounds it in the nature of relationships, collaboration, and the balance of power. Two people sit back to back in tractor seats, and one by one push up from the floor, as if on a seesaw. The seats connect to a pair of old red flywheels that once helped run a horse-drawn fire engine. With these materials, the artist forsakes the perfect gleam of stainless steel for the patina of antiques, and the whiff of history weaves with the complicated give-and-take of partnering." Cate McQuaid, The Boston Globe: '5000 Moving Parts' at MIT Museum (Art Review)
Below, experiencing To Congugate with Anne Lilly at the MIT Museum, Nov.2013
Miss Malala Yousafzai at the United Nations

In an effort to fight for global youth education, Malala Yousafzai will celebrate her 16th birthday at the United Nations where she will submit a petition for education equality to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. To mark this occasion, Galerie Swanström will exhibit the painting titled MISS MALALA by the female street artist, gilf! Please join us at the gallery in SoHo for a cocktail reception on Monday, July 15 from 6 to 8 pm. A portion of the sale of this painting will be donated by the artist to THE MALALA FUND
http://www.malalafund.org
Malala, a student and education activist, became a victim of terrorism after she spoke out in favor of the education of girls. She is the youngest nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize in history - and recognized this year by TIME Magazine: The 100 Most Influential People in the World.
MISS MALALA by gilf! 2012, 40 x 20 inches,
spray paint on black dibond, edition of three
"Knowledge is the ultimate weapon."
gilf! is a contemporary street artist living and working in Brooklyn, New York. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a BFA in Fine Art.
The painting, Miss Malala, will be exhibited at the galerie by appointment (+1.347.326.3259), through July. You may support Malala and young people all over the world fighting for an education by signing the petition from A World at School.