KRUGER SCULPTURES AT BOOKSTEIN PROJECTS
Three sculptures by Louise Kruger will be on view at Bookstein Projects, starting June 6. They give viewers a glimpse at the variety of sculptural work she created over a 50-year artistic career.
The main piece is “Man in Rowboat”, shown at right. It is a masterful flat aluminum piece created in c. 1975. The work measures 31” x 34”.
“Man in Rowboat” is included in Bookstein Projects’ summer group show, entitled “Mercury Rising”, which includes works by other well known artists including Olive Ayhens, Milton Avery, Paul Resika, and Stuart Davis. The group show runs from June 6 to July 19, 2024.
Bookstein is located at 39 East 78th Street in Manhattan, in the heart of the silk stocking district. For opening hours and other information contact the gallery at 212-750-0949. A full list of partipating artists is posted on the gallery’s web site: www.booksteinprojects.com
Two other Kruger sculptures on show at the gallery are “Reclining terracotta woman”, and “Man leaning on window”, shown below.
(Click on images to get a closer view!)
%20-%20274%20K_JPG.jpg)
.jpg)
JAMES MCDONOUGH :
CHANNELING THOUGHTS
THROUGH ART
His paintings and drawings are notable for their boldness -- Boldness of color, line and form.
It took great determination for McDonough to break out of the confines of a military family, to wrestle with his vision of artistic expression and the nature of reality around him.
“At an early age I was disappointed that an enjoyable moment was not infinite,” he recently recalled. “My mother discovering my pretentious nature encouraged my curiosity with drawing and painting while informing that all artists were poor.”
Arriving in New York, McDonough’s horizons expanded, as he studied at the Art Students League and absorbed the intense art culture that has long thrived in this city. And gradually he developed both a style of painting and a philosophical stance in which he could define his work.
“Most of the imagery in my work is derived from my surroundings,” he says. “It is not to be viewed as a precise recording of what I have seen but rather an animation of what I was feeling when I came across a place, person or situation. Something that starts as a doodle is later expanded on and slowly forms into a composition.”
His present inspiration has roots in his youth, when he first felt the urge to put pencil to paper or brush to canvas.
McDonough suggests his muse is inside himself: “Through my practice as a painter I strive to document my inner thoughts so I may look back upon them to help me understand how I got to were I am today.”
SCOTT COUSINS: BLENDING IDEAS & EXPERIENCES IN ART
SCOTT COUSINS: TURNING EXPERIENCES AND IDEAS INTO VISUAL ART
Scott Cousins has a unique set of artistic skills which he deploys to bring to visual life his experiences and thoughts.
“Using my imagination is one of my favorite things” he says, “whether I'm making art from observation, from my inner vision, working abstractly or some hybrid combination of those ways of approaching painting.”
As he wrestles with the challenge of translating his thoughts into art, he will often experiment with a number of variations. “Generally I create a series of paintings pursuing a visual idea or concept, a way of using the paint or a content driven idea.” This can result in as many as 25 paintings being created in a series which addresses a particular creative or technical challenge.
The process usually starts small. It begins by working on smaller works on paper. Those drawings and goauche paintings then evolve into larger oil paintings.
“I might abandon an idea and come back to it some time later,” he says. “I follow my obsessions.” He even has art dreams, in which he will visualize his own or other artworks.
Scott’s artistic techniques are drawn from his experiences, experimentation, invention and a life spent immersed in the visual, performing and literary arts.
“Being a visual artist is a solo act and time spend alone in contemplation is something I enjoy,” he says. But the solitary nature of creation is countered by his enjoyment of connecting with people from all walks of life through his art.
“My passion in life is making my art,” he says. “I'm happiest and most stimulated when I'm actually making art.”
The biggest challenge is deciding which projects to pursue.
LOUISE KRUGER'S ITALIAN BRONZE ART ADVENTURE
In 1956, Louise Kruger and her family traveled to Europe on a Fulbright scholarship to learn about the latest trends in the fine arts of Italy and France.
Above all, Kruger was keen to explore the metal casting of sculptural work in Italy.
“I was especially keen to see how they worked in bronze, and the execution of sculptures in that material,” she recalled.
Living in Fiesole, a hill town above Florence, Kruger was able to take advantage of the foundries which dotted the region, which could handle the custom work she planned to execute.
The Italians foundries were expert in using the “lost wax” method of creating sculptures, allowing Kruger to produce a large number of works, ranging anywhere from 6” to life-size figures.
Prior to casting bronze sculptures in Italy, Kruger had only worked in wood, or wood sculptures covered in copper sheeting.
“It allowed me to take a fresh look at my work,” Kruger recalled. “It inspired me.”
“I found people in Italy who were doing interesting work, and I studied their techniques,” she said. “It was absolutely a learning process for me.”
TAI LIN: SEEKING PERFECTION AMID THE QUIXOTIC
On first meeting Tai Lin, one might be struck by two seemingly contradictory aspects of his personality: his soft-spoken reserve, and his quixotic and humorous view of the world.
These two aspects of his personality have helped drive his creative output, which has been heavily influenced by his classical training in the visual arts, both in his birthplace, Taiwan, and more recently in New York City. But neither his academic achievements at Cheng-Chi University in Taipei, nor his subsequent study of drawing and painting in various mediums at the National Academy School of Fine Art and the Art Students League in New York City, could have foretold his career as an artist.
It was the inspiration he took from his New York experiences which drove Tai Lin to systematically hone his skills. He has created his own niche as a professional artist, specializing in the depiction of the muscular male form.
“My works may be described as realistic, mysterious, sensual and humorous at the same time with figures or subjects frequently emerging out of a dark space,” he says. “I incorporate a style akin to photorealism. Many of my pieces simultaneously project or evoke something erotic, obscure, enigmatic, perhaps surreal, and glowing.”
For Tai Lin, the creative process is almost a religion, striving to create meticulous works of precise definition. The obvious professionalism of his execution has attracted a growing number of admirers and collectors.
Tai's work has been featured internationally in several art publications. For two years he has been named "Best In Show" at the national Sidetracks Gallery "Naked In New Hope" exhibition. He is also currently represented by Gallery Des Artistes in New Hope, PA.
Fame in and of itself is not his quest. Rather, it is the steely determination, under a benign presence, to create the most perfect compositions of the male form. It is a task that brings all of his past training and present experience to bear.