Taos gallery
9/11 and the Time Machine — Larry Bell Opening at DAFA July 5, 2014
Larry Bell’s Rare “Teeth in Orange Juice” Series to Exhibit in Taos.
Opening on Saturday July 5, 2014 at David Anthony Fine Art in Taos, Larry Bell will exhibit a rarely shown series of collages on canvas created in the aftermath of September 11th.
If you’ve studied art history anytime since the early 70’s, you know of Larry Bell. In Taos, we know Larry as one of our own internationally acclaimed artists. Earlier this year, Larry returned home from London after a sold-out exhibition at the White Cube. Shortly afterward, he was in São Paulo, Brazil with another very successful show. After over 50 years of art making, Larry is at the top of his game. Now, DAFA welcomes Mr. Bell back to the Taos gallery scene after a long absence.
The series, which began with a different intention prior to that event, according to Mr. Bell, “became the color of the fireballs, and the fragments of the papers and collage elements became the strange imagery that is seen in the works. The acrid greenish color of the dust and detritus in the air became part of the imagery also. My work became totally driven by the imagery and emotion of the incident and was totally emotional and intuitive . . . in the 30 days after the event I had made about 30 canvases with this kind of imagery on it.”
The Collages are paired with the Time Machine, an installation of a reclaimed experiment from Los Alamos Laboratories, that compresses reflected and transmitted light so a reflected image is superimposed on whatever is transmitted through the glass of the sculpture. To Mr. Bell it suggests “the compression of the materials of the buildings on the casualties inside the structures as if the people had become parts of a flat collage.”
The Time Machine, paired with the canvasses, creates the emotional and the intuitive surreal images of witnessing that event. Mr. Bell adds, “I like these works only because they are so totally honest. The only title I could think of for these odd images was “Teeth in Orange Juice”.” So “Teeth in Orange Juice” they are named, and on exhibit only for the second time in more than a decade.
Concurrently showing during Bell’s summer exhibition will be abstract works by Cody Riddle. Another Taos artist, Cody has exhibited several times at the Harwood Museum of Art and was part of a 50-year retrospective of abstract expressionism at Hulse-Warmen gallery in 2010. Not only will new painted works by Riddle be available, but also sculptural wall mounted works of vibrantly painted, ingeniously sliced branches of Pinõn. At first look one is struck with the beauty of the organic sculptures, followed immediately by wonderment at how the work was accomplished. Stay tuned for a separate reception for Cody Riddle later this summer.
Larry Bell’s “9/11 and The Time Machine” opens at David Anthony Fine Art on Saturday, July 5, 2014, 4:00-7:00pm at 132 Kit Carson Road in Taos, New Mexico. Both exhibits continue until September 21.
David Anthony Fine Art, (DAFA), located at 132 Kit Carson Road in Taos, New Mexico, presents the most innovative artworks from Taos and around the world, considering all genres, mediums and artists, in an environment that is accessible and welcoming to all.
Taos Opera Institute Performs at David Anthony Fine Art
On Friday June 13 at 6pm a free concert will be performed at David Anthony Fine Art as part of the 7th Annual Taos Opera Institute Festival.
Each year in June, the Taos Opera Institute (TOI) conducts a highly intensive program for the serious singer at the Taos Ski Valley. Singers from around the country audition to participate in TOI, which is designed to bridge the gap between academia and opera apprenticeships. Graduates are prepared for various careers in opera.
Enjoy an intimate setting inside the beautifully adorned art gallery that is known as DAFA. “Last year TOI performed briefly at DAFA and it was a wonderful experience for me” says David Mapes, owner of DAFA, “The acoustics were surprisingly great”. “I am honored that our gallery was chosen as a regular venue this year,” adds Mapes.
The Quartet will perform from 6 – 7pm and refreshments will be served. Performing will be Anthony Moreno, Rainelle Krause, Denise Wernley and Joseph Lopez. While the event is free, The Taos Opera Institute, a non-profit organization will be accepting donations for their programs. For more information on the Taos Opera Institute, please visit their website at taosoi.org.
RECEPTION: 6pm – 7pm, Friday, June 13
LOCATION: David Anthony Fine Art
132 Kit Carson Road, Taos, NM
“Out of This Earth” by Hank Saxe
“Out of This Earth” Exhibition features new works by Hank Saxe in his first solo show since last years exhibit at the Harwood
Artist’s love of science and nature combine to test the limits of the ceramic medium
David Anthony Fine Art is now exhibiting works of ceramic sculpture by Hank Saxe. “These pieces highlight Hank’s virtuosity,” says DAFA owner David Mapes. “They exemplify the skills Hank has shared with other artists, and allow visitors to the gallery to experience his work on a more intimate scale than his architectural sculptures.” In Saxe’s work there is an ambiguity where the viewer never knows exactly what they are looking at; is it landscape, raw geometry, a sculpted object or a natural geologic feature?
Says Jack Smith, a longtime Taos artist, “If I had to choose one word for Hank’s recent sculpture I would have to say “laconic” comes first to mind. They are concise works which share a subtext of sophisticated humor from the cartoon modern era of the 50’s, which informed the evolution of modern style, yet they plumb the depth of sacred landscape from the Mogollon Rim to the Rio Grande rift in the great Southwest. It is an exquisite marriage of the lineage of ancient natural forms, informed and torqued into modernity by way of a quite brilliant, clever mind and his command of alchemy.”
Hank Saxe is an artist whose style and mastery of ceramic art is recognizable to collectors because they have seen signs of it before. Hank Saxe has long been the technical and mechanical genius behind the works of sculptors like Jim Wagner, Lynda Benglis and Lee Mullican. From Tucson to Taos, Las Vegas to Oklahoma City, people experience his architectural and sculptural installations on a daily basis in the public realm. In Taos, Hank’s work graces the entrance to the UNM Klauer campus.
Saxe’s fascination with “earth forms” is evident especially in the works that will be on display at DAFA this spring. In sculpting these pieces Saxe has endeavored to “take the advice of the clay”, allowing each piece to become an expression of the land that so inspires him. With his use of found clay and minerals from the local environment Saxe has combined his knowledge of geology and mineralogy with his observations of how the earth shapes itself, in order to create these remarkable ceramic expressions.
Hank Saxe’s work will be featured at DAFA beginning with an opening reception on Saturday, May 10th from 4 to 6 pm.
David Anthony Fine Art, (DAFA), located at 132 Kit Carson Road in Taos, New Mexico, presents the most innovative artworks from Taos and around the world, considering all genres, mediums and artists, in an environment that is accessible and welcoming to all.
DAFA honors artist John Farnsworth
This April it is DAFA’s honor to feature renown Taos artist John Farnsworth.
Best known for his stunning paintings of horses, Farnsworth’s talent as a painter is profound. He is a master watercolorist, but excels in mediums from oils to pastels. Farnsworth has painted many different subjects, from Native Americans and horses, to landscapes and O’Keefe style still life.
Kachinas though, have long been a subject that fascinated Farnsworth. He says, “It is primarily this sense of life, of otherness, of enhanced possibilities, I believe, that attracts me.” This month, DAFA proudly displays a collection of his small (6″x6″) Kachina oils.
This month at DAFA experience John Farnsworth’s Kachinas, as well as our always varied exhibits of work from artists of all styles and mediums, from photography to glass. Come in and explore all the exhibits at David Anthony Fine Art at 132 A Kit Carson Rd., Taos.