Category: reviews

by Siba Kumar Das

Open till March 12, 2022, this is Aicon Art’s third solo show celebrating the art of Rachid Koraïchi—humanist, polymath, creator of art carrying universal significance. While originating in a culture permeated by Quranic scholarship and Sufi mysticism, his art crosses artistic frontiers going beyond Islamic calligraphy and inscription. In inventing a unique artistic language, Koraïchi draws upon many languages and cultures, including those of the Berber and Tuareg peoples. Within his fold, too, are invented Chinese ideograms plus magical squares and talismanic glyphs and other auspicious signs. Also most impressive is the range of his materials, the employment of which has often inspired the artist to create a symbiotic partnership with designers and artisans around the globe. 

by Mary Hrbacek

Nathaniel Mary Quinn, “Not Far From Home; Still Far Away,” at Gagosian, presented an exploration of Quinn’s relationships in fourteen intense portraits, created in a range of media that includes oil paint, gouache, charcoal, oil stick and pastel.  Distortion is the keynote of Quinn’s inner-based perception, expressed in a vision that transforms the artist, his friends and his female subject, apparently his mother.  He disregards visually perceivable features, boldly executing truncated, layered, re-imagined, and spliced images that exude a sense of deep emotional anguish.  Quinn’s impeccable inventive paintings compare with the visceral images Francis Bacon created in his portraits, and Picasso’s Synthetic Cubist women.  

by Jen Dragon

Woodstock, NY – Forest Bathing is a concept that originated in Japan in the 1980’s as an antidote to an increasingly technological and alienating world. The idea is to mindfully walk in the woodlands and reconnect with the sounds, smells, colors and textures of nature. The recent Covid pandemic and its restrictions on indoor gatherings have forced a return to the outdoors creating a renewed appreciation for the forest habitat and its seasonal cycles. Inspired by the woodlands of upstate New York, this exhibition features artwork by Ashley Garrett, Anne Leith, Iain Machell, John Lyon Paul, Christy Rupp and Martin Weinstein.