~BRENDAN CASS/NEW NATURE/OPENS TO-NITE !!
BRENDAN CASS, ‘THE HUDSON RIVER’, 2008, acrylic on canvas. 89 x 166 in.
PHOTO COURTESY: STELLAN HOLM GALLERY
and, if you are in NEW YORK !!
BRENDAN CASS, ‘NEW NATURE’ – OPENS TO-NITE !! SAT JAN 31 / 6-8 PM !!
the show runs: JAN 31 – MARCH 4, 2009
STELLAN HOLM GALLERY – 524 WEST 24th ST – CHELSEA
BRENDAN CASS, photographed in his studio, just before the show went up !!
JANUARY 14, 2009. BROOKLYN, NYC.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
PHOTOS FROM THE OPENING . . .
BRENDAN CASS, ‘The Hudson River’, 2008. acrylic on canvas, 89 x 166 in.
The show was beautiful, airy and light. full of light. radiant, and TRANSFORMATIVE.
A yin to the yang of the harshness of troubled times . . . a kind of otherly cosmos.
you stepped in, and you stepped into another world.
Jackson Pollock, if Jackson Pollock threw the I Ching.
a peek into a private office.
BRENDAN CASS – the man – of the evening, opens his first solo show at STELLAN HOLM GALLERY – entitled: ‘New Nature’. The show opened on Saturday, Jan 31st and runs thru Wed March 4, 2009.
dedicated art scene follower EL, and on the right, also strongly interested in the NYC art scene, AIRON ARMSTRONG. AIRON ARMSTRONG is a dedicated and skilled martial artist, who began training when he was 5. He is a four time National CHI SAO champion, and has trained in Wing Chun for the past 14 years, “becoming one of the next generation of New York based Wing Chung Sifus”. He has appeared in several feature films as a stunt man/martial artist.
BOBBY G made the opening.
BRENDAN CASS, ‘Murano’, 2008. acrylic on canvas, 30 x 48 in.
caught up in – ‘Capri’ !!
BOBBY G loved the show. He said the paintings reminded him of that old Hindu story about the gods – who went to a mountain searching for magic herbs, but – when they couldn’t find them …
they just brought back the mountain !!
detail, BRENDAN CASS, ‘Capri’.
DONALD BAECHLER and KEVIN BAKER.
KEVIN BAKER shows us one of his own paintings.
in the front gallery . . .
BRENDAN CASS, ‘Akureyri’, 2008. acrylic on canvas, 73 x 120 in.
Stellan Holm Gallery associate, CHRISTINE SPANGLER.
artist CHIE FUEKI !!
Chie Fueki introduces us to JOHN WILLIAMS and AIKO HACHISUKA, who are visiting from L.A., that’s Chie on the right.
JOHN WILLIAMS’ work is currently featured in ‘Insurance Is Not Always Enough’ a group show curated by JONATHAN DURHAM at the ABRONS ART CENTER, HENRY STREET SETTLEMENT, here in NYC, and he will have a one person show at SISTER GALLERY in L.A., opening FEB 21, 2009 and running thru MARCH 28, 2009.
see: SISTER/NEWS & EXHIBITIONS
Brendan introduces us to SYLVAN LIONNI, on the left.
Sylvan Lionni shows at FREIGHT+VOLUME. In fact, he had a wonderful assemblage/wall piece in the CHANGECASE SHOW, that was presented, almost this time, last year by STEVEN STEWART and YASHA WALLIN. (JAN 21 – FEB 10, 2008)
see: CHANGECASE & scroll down to the 5th image !!
BRENDAN CASS, ‘Tuscany’, 2009. acrylic on canvas, 72 x 132 in.
Brendan greets two of his mentors: KATHERINE BRADFORD, of SUNY PURCHASE, and STEPHEN WESTFALL of SVA and BARD. Mr. Westfall shows at LENNON, WEINBERG.
KATHARINE BRADFORD shows with EDWARD THORP.
also at the BRENDAN CASS ‘New Nature’ opening: BILL SAYLOR, AIDAS BAREIKIS and ELIZABETH (LIZZIE) BALOUGH. Bill Saylor has a show coming up this Spring 2009 at LEO KOENIG.
Aidas Barekis presented 2 dynamite installations at LEO KOENIG, almost this same time last year: ‘Easy Times’, FEB 21 – MARCH 21, 2008 and ‘Fancy Meeting’, JAN 10 – FEB 8, 2008.
see: AIDAS BAREIKIS/EASY TIMES & FANCY MEETING
Lizzie is the long time Director of LEO KOENIG GALLERY.
BILL SAYLOR, JULIAN DERSIN, and AIDAS BAREIKIS.
actually, as a matter of factual newsworthiness !! – AIDAS BAREIKIS, and his work – is most probably seen in the JOSH HARRIS DOCUMENTARY – WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – helmed by ONDI TIMONER – that just won the 2009 Grand Jury/Documentary Prize at Sundance !! Aidas and AARON BREWER are notorious for having concocted the TOXIC ROOM – at QUIET – the big PSEUDO MILLENNIUM PARTY featured in WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – and what was so astounding about it, besides the futuristic hard-edged audacity of the installation itself – was – and Josh loved this, it was constructed r-i-g-h-t next to the pod hotel living quarters for the 90+ resident artists !! think Josh did that on purpose – YES !! In fact this over-the-top and indeed toxic installation – was one of the reasons – the NYC FIRE DEPT shut the party, down !!
ANKE WEYER and AIDAS BAREIKIS, two very hard-core and very talented !! – NYC artists !!
BRENDAN CASS, ‘Greenland’, 2009. acrylic on canvas, 60 x 79 in.
detail, a home in the realm, BRENDAN CASS, ‘Greenland’.
or is it? looks pretty animate to me. maybe it’s a home-head, ever hear of those ?!!
ask KELIE BOWMAN !! ‘New Nature’ – ? – right on.
detail, a splash, or is it a ghost !! in the realm !! BRENDAN CASS, ‘Greenland’.
some kind of other-worldliness going on !! BRENDAN CASS, ‘Greenland’.
one look back at ‘Murano’ !!
yep, there’s a ghost in this realm, too.
see him ? BRENDAN CASS, ‘Murano’.
BRENDAN CASS, ‘Tuscany’. one last look !!
yep, a house, or is it !!
worldly landscape. imaginary landscape. inner landscape ? visionary landscape ? future landscape ?
peopled, or ghosted !! not exactly your grandma’s HUDSON RIVER SCHOOL !!
reverence for nature meets JOESEPH BEUYS ? NOT !!
more like HUDSON RIVER SCHOOL … meets ZEN MASTER !! on mushrooms.
detail, BRENDAN CASS, ‘Tuscany’.
landscape speak !! landscape spark !!
just get me – outta h-e-r-e !! and, thru the looking glass.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
UP-DATE – TUES FEB 3, 2009/6:38 PM:
it is turning into a huge snowy puffy white blizzard in New York City, & beyond, to-night.
everything, cars, tree boughs, buildings, roofs, traffic poles – hang heavy with thick puffy white snow. at times snow winds rush by swirling their tiny snowflakes about. intermittent power outages are occurring and the blanket of snow has silenced, in a profound way – what we call – the North East Corridor . . . I can’t see any mountains from my vantage point – but, somehow in this snowy vortex – I now feel Brendan’s paintings to be just as r-e-a-l, as surreal !! Landscapes seen with the puffiness of heavy fallen snows, but, with the shifting layers of the snow-laden winds – colored – painted, tinted – as if seen thru a prism !! – the white light of the snow – split up into the many colors of the rainbow. I guess you could say – I pretty much dig the work – what can I say. makes me travel in my mind’s eye – to realms – within and without. ‘New Nature’ is a trip.