Ellen Berkenblit's 2012 exhibition at Anton Kern Gallery features gravity-defying paintings
From March 1 to March 31, 2012, Anton Kern Gallery in New York City showcases Ellen Berkenblit's solo exhibition, featuring 20 new paintings that subvert conventional figure-ground dynamics. Situated at 532 West 20th Street, this exhibition marks a continuation of her artistic journey since her debut in 1984. Berkenblit employs a strikingly dark and dissonant color palette, reminiscent of Ernst Kirchner, to alter the figure-ground relationship. The central character has evolved from a timid figure to a grinning girl with greenish-blond hair, evoking witch-like imagery. In one piece, she seems to execute a loop-de-loop, encapsulating a decade of Berkenblit's investigation into color, narrative, and abstraction, culminating in visual intrigue and optical chaos.
Key facts
- Ellen Berkenblit's solo exhibition at Anton Kern Gallery ran from March 1 to March 31, 2012
- The show featured 20 new paintings with a dissonant, emotionally charged palette
- The exhibition was held at 532 West 20th Street, New York City, between 10th and 11th avenues
- Berkenblit's work flips traditional figure-ground relationships, with figures entering from various angles
- The protagonist changed from a shy figure to a pointy-nosed, gap-toothed, grinning lass with green-tinged blond hair
- The conceptual inversion references Shusaku Arakawa's 1970s series
- One painting is titled 'Broken Pane of Frosted Glass, 2012'
- Berkenblit has experimented with painting on metal grates and exclusive black-and-white exhibitions
Entities
Artists
- Ellen Berkenblit
- Ernst Kirchner
- Georg Baselitz
- Shusaku Arakawa
Institutions
- Anton Kern Gallery
- artcritical
Locations
- New York City
- United States