Nicole Wermers' 'Givers & Takers' exhibition critiques consumerism through sculptural satire at Tanya Bonakdar

At Tanya Bonakdar Gallery in New York, Nicole Wermers presents sculptures that blend art-historical references with sharp political commentary. Her 'Givers & Takers' series features upturned restroom hand dryers directing air into stove exhaust fans with bowed glass hoods, highlighting the limited nature of consumer choice through subtle variations between pieces. These works evoke caricatures of top-hatted capitalists while critiquing entitlement rhetoric in American politics over the past six years. Wermers' Vertical Awnings series—rolled-up awnings with colored stripes—references both Daniel Buren's stripes and Nancy Shaver's towering assemblages. Using industrially produced materials in ergonomic constructions, her work continues a lineage from Marcel Duchamp by staging objects to emphasize their alien qualities. The exhibition runs through July 29 at 521 West 21st Street in New York.