Friedman Benda has revealed a new art exhibition, “The New Realism”, incorporating furntiure, ceramics, and textiles, and it will be on view until 2 July 2021. Curated by Gleen Adamson, this art exhibition features artworks by top designers and contemporary artists. Keep reading to discover everything about Fridman Bednda’s exhibition.
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The curator Glenn Adamson has given Realism a new meaning with this art exhibition, emphasizing the immediacy and need to quite literally, keep it real, instead of the typical idea of naturalism associated with realism. At the New York gallery, Friedman Benda presents nine practitioners whose work meets the present context. They are “realists” in two senses: in a diverse art historical context; and, as individualistic pragmatists.
The show includes works from different artists and designers including Fernando Laposse, Ferreol Babin, Tanya Aguiñiga, Paul S. Briggs, Carl Emil Jacobsen, Mattias Sellden, Thaddeus Wolfe.
We are interested in the range of historic resonances that the concept of ‘realism’ has for contemporary practice. In some cases, it is a form of social engagement–a position that can be traced all the way back to the ‘realism’ of mid-19th century French painting (artists like Courbet), but has important connections to the polyphonic voices of contemporary activism. Realism can also be expressed in a less politicized way, through material indexicality that recalls the work of Rauschenberg; or by exploring the overlaps and divergences between representation and abstraction as means of responding to the real, with a sophistication that recalls historic African sculpture, or constructed textile.
Glenn Adamson
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The eight contemporary artists present in Friedman Benda’s show are connected by this individualized approach to materiality. Each of them is a maker armed with highly specialized talents – whether it’s Thaddeus Wolfe’s unique process of casting glass, sculptor Paul S. Briggs’ use of slab-building and pinch-forming to create his philosophical works, or Tanya Aguiniga’s mixed media weavings that simultaneously confronts ideas of gender, identity and culture, especially of marginalized communities.
In some ways, the case for a new realism almost makes itself. We’ve heard so much about fake news, and the distortions of the digital and political realm, over the past few years. A response is badly needed. And you can see this abundantly in the work we’ve included: it’s all so intensely made and draws deeply on its creator’s own personal, physical, and psychological resources. That directness and honesty don’t come from anywhere though. I was also thinking about deeper histories of realism, in art history and even in philosophy, as a way to frame the creative act as a confrontation with its own time
Glenn Adamson
Friedman Benda‘s show is a registration of the times and an investment in embodied creativity. The works that are presented an approach to social awareness and self-knowledge, both aesthetic and ethical guideposts.
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