Shulamit Nazarian is pleased to present Low Relief, New York-based Wendy White’s second solo exhibition with the gallery. The artist will present two new bodies of work: the After Calder series and a group of new epoxy resin floor sculptures. Also on view will be a large-scale mobile situated at the entrance to the gallery.
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Wendy WhiteMobile (Peace), 2021Dibond, steel, epoxy resin, powder coated steel chain, cotton rope, hardware, LED96 x 96 in (variable)
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Wendy WhiteEventide, 2021Acrylic on two canvases, dibond72 x 72 in
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Wendy WhiteRainbow (after Calder), 2022Acrylic on canvas, wood frame, steel, cotton rope, dibond48 x 63.75 x 9.5 in
Framed: 48 x 66.75 x 9.5 in -
Wendy WhitePleasure! (after Calder), 2021Acrylic on canvas, wood frame, steel, cotton rope, dibond61.25 x 48.25 x 9.5 in
Framed: 79.75 x 48.25 x 9.5 in -
Adding to the sculptural presence of the paintings, museum-style floor risers have been installed throughout the gallery, designating a controlled viewing distance as well as reflecting light back onto the work. This serves as a tongue-in-cheek reference to high-modernist presentation and the elevating of objects in an institutional context.
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Wendy WhiteLow Relief (Alone in Public), 2022Wire, wood, epoxy resin, enamel61 x 26 x 11.25 in
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Wendy WhiteRain Cloud (after Calder), 2021Acrylic on canvas, wood frame, steel, cotton rope, dibond61.25 x 48 x 8 in
Framed: 61.25 x 51 x 8 in -
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As we recognize these elements as belonging to the artist’s distinct visual lexicon, we are also presented with a new, hybrid experience of her creative practice.
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Her sculptural symbols conjure various meanings: cut-out rain clouds suggest weather patterns; pixelated hearts are stand-ins for accumulated lives in video games (or perhaps likes to online content); and rainbows take on the optimism of a sky finally clearing after a storm.
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Wendy WhitePixel Heart (after Calder), 2021Acrylic on canvas, wood frame, steel, cotton rope, dibond61.25 x 48.25 x 9.5 in
Framed: 79.5 x 48.25 x 9.5 in -
Wendy WhiteRaincloud II (Neon Signs on Overcast Days), 2021Aluminum, automotive paint48 x 60 in
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White’s new free-standing sculptures riff on Alberto Giacometti's attenuated figures. Yet, while she adopts Giacometti’s stylized texture, she eschews the human figure, choosing instead anthropomorphized peace symbols in various states of action and rest: transience, walking toward an unknown destination, relaxing, and lying on the floor. In animating such a ubiquitous symbol, the artist calls attention to both the mutability of symbols and our collective ennui in making sense of them.
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The works in Low Relief continue a decades-long exploration of art history and pop culture symbolism—both in critique and homage—suggesting that there are no new marks, only new combinations.
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In 2021, White completed a site-specific mural at the Kranzberg Arts Foundation, St. Louis. The artist’s works are in the permanent collection of Detroit Institute of the Arts; The High Museum; RISD Art Museum; Museum Goch; The Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts in Birmingham; Kranzberg Art Foundation; Saks Fifth Avenue; Taguchi Art Collection; UK Art Museum; Mercedes-Benz Stadium; Savannah College of Art & Design; UBS Art Collection; Progressive Art Collection; Jimenéz-Colón Collection; The Shinola Hotel; Tulip Collection; Rocket Mortgage Field House; Detroit Pistons Practice Facility; Southern Poverty Law Center and ARCO Foundation. In 2022, White’s work will join the Le Verger Sculpture Garden in Lacoste, France.
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