Kari Cholnoky's 'Leech' at Nicelle Beauchene Gallery Confronts Survival and Dullness

Kari Cholnoky's third solo exhibition at Nicelle Beauchene Gallery, titled 'Leech,' runs through May 9, 2026, at 7 Franklin Place, New York. The show features sculptures and mixed-media works that explore themes of survival, bodily alteration, and the risks of collective dullness in an age of image saturation. Key works include 'Conservation of Mass' (2026), a cranial-like alabaster form with a wisdom tooth hidden in a cavity; 'Leech' (2026), a bust-like form with peeled-open panels revealing dark interiors; and 'Center of Gravity' (2026), a towering piece with five horizontal paintings on a steel rack, spanning 2018–2026. Cholnoky uses materials such as alabaster, steel, paper pulp, epoxy putty, wire, faux fur, and blood. The exhibition juxtaposes figure and landscape, painting and sculpture, and incorporates MRI scans, biological diagrams, and pop culture imagery. Critic Matthew Logsdon, founder of Field of Play gallery in Gowanus, Brooklyn, notes that the work 'jolts and enlivens' gallery routine, posing the question of what is at stake in contemporary art. Cholnoky's practice suggests survival as a response to the outsourcing of human thought.