In a powerful curatorial debut, Peter Makebish brings his exhibition titled ‘In Dialogue’ to Anonymous Gallery, pairing 4 generations of painters whose studio practices share bold continuity and intrinsic similarities: Ross Bleckner with Matt Jones; Kenny Scharf with Kadar Brock; Donald Baechler with Bill Saylor; Ouattara Watts with Dustin Yellin; John Newsom with Brendan Cass; and Sante D’Orazio with Hermann Nitsch.
Through the use of materials, surface structure, thematic iconographies, varied aspects of movement, and narrative pictorial, synthetic qualities, the large-scale works echo the enhanced spiritual qualities related to the history of post-New York School painting. In this ambitious exhibition, the romantic notions of idealism are expressed through a multi-generational mix of artistic genres and mediums, painting, drawing, photography and film. The show draws inspiration from the world of music and DJ culture especially, where different genres of songs are mixed together to produce compelling new sounds and each track is transformed and “exhibited” in a new way. Similarly, “In Dialogue” connects works of art so that contrasts are highlighted but the composition of each piece is intensified, creating a conversation about the whole.
A full-color catalogue of the exhibition will be published with essays by Anthony Haden-Guest and Colin Huerter.