Three New York exhibitions explore 'girlie' aesthetic with Elizabeth Huey, Hilary Harkness, and Thomas Trosch

Elizabeth Huey's exhibition at Feigen Contemporary, running through May 28, 2005, features symbolic narratives with angels, girls, and deer set in forests and Tudor mansions. Her work, including the diptych 'The Cyclothymic Forest' (2005), blends folk, religious, and historical imagery, showcasing a tension between naivety and sophistication. Hilary Harkness's show at Mary Boone, open until June 25, presents sapphic, sado-masochistic scenes with a cartoonist's precision, reflecting alienation through near-identical figures. Thomas Trosch's exhibition at Fredericks Freiser, through June 10, satirizes modern art and bourgeois femininity with a camp style compared to Florine Stettheimer. Amy Wilson's show 'The Global Appeal of Liberty' at Bellwether closes this weekend, highlighting a split between psychological intensity and delicate aesthetics. These exhibitions are linked by a 'girlie' aesthetic, characterized by adolescent touches and feyness, with influences from Henry Darger. The shows are located in New York City at specific addresses: Feigen Contemporary at 535 W 20th Street, Mary Boone at 745 Fifth Avenue, and Fredericks Freiser at 504 W 22nd Street. The article originally appeared in the New York Sun in May 2005.