A Closer Look: A Roundup of Art Happenings in Palm Beach

Gavlak Gallery presented Maynard Monrow: Ecstatic Havoc at the Royal Poinciana Plaza. The show included 84 x 40 inch wall paintings of the artist’s highly relevant text art which speaks to current political and cultural themes.  

A self-described “disruptor-vivant, conceptual flaneur, and radical feminist,” Monrow observes the ironies and peculiarities of everyday life presenting them with unique artistic flair. His use of text as image in various media expose the intersection and often fallibility of both representational systems. 

Born in Hollywood, CA, Monrow received his BFA and MFA from the California Institute of the Arts. His work has been exhibited in numerous institutions and galleries including: The FLAG Art Foundation; Art and Culture Center/ Hollywood; and ACME Gallery, Los Angeles.  

He currently divides his time between New York and West Palm Beach, where he serves as curator of Beth DeWoody’s The Bunker Art Space.  

Also at The Royal, Calder: Composing Motion, an exhibition of mobiles, stabiles, standing mobiles and works on paper, which explores the artist’s mastery of abstraction and movement across a range of media which represent more than three decades of his practice, primarily from the latter half of his life at Acquavella Palm Beach through March 30.  

 Emerging in the 1920s Paris, Alexander Calder (1898-1976), was an American artist and disruptor who challenged established boundaries in art by collapsing mass and setting sculpture in motion. In 1931, he pioneered an entirely new type of art with the invention of the mobile or kinetic abstract compositions, which continue to influence generations of artists today. Composing Motion shows how movement remained central to the the artist’s oeuvre throughout his career. It draws its title from a statement Calder made in 1933, “ Just as one can compose colors, or forms, so one can compose motion.” 

 

Aktion Art Founders Nick Hissom & Kameron Ramirez hosted an opening reception for their latest show, Sans Titre, in collaboration with Wynn Fine Art and the Charles Riva Collection featuring blue chip works of art by George Condo, Andy Warhol, Ed Ruscha, Robert Motherwell, Sherrie Levine, and Richard Prince. 

Nick’s mother and step-father, Andrea & Steve Wynn, were among the VIP guests in attendance which included Jane Holzer, Emma Holzer, Belinda Stronack, Lisa & James Cohen, Kim Heirston and Beth Rudin DeWoody. 

On view through April 14 at Aktion Art, 150 Worth Avenue, The Esplanade, 2nd Floor. Open Tues – Sat, 11am – 6pm. 

 

A Divine Comedy, an exhibition of 10 paintings by artist Danielle Kosann, opened on February 8th at Rosenbaum Contemporary on Worth Avenue. 

Kosann is an illustrator who creates intricate narratives, often tinged with humor and satire, within her paintings. She playfully uses references from Instagram imagery, theater, film, books and art history to create colorful, whimsical worlds that feel familiar and nostalgic while appealing to our collective desire to escape.  

A nod to Dante’s Divine Comedy, the works in the exhibition also explore the fine line between escape and excess.  

“In taking a slightly closer look at my painting, Paradise It Seems (60” x 60″, acrylic and ink on canvas), which is part of the show, I often play with the idea that escape or excess can take us to a place no longer reflective of reality and I love to hide little stories in the works. In this painting, the luxe wallpaper we often use to make a space resemble a paradise surrounds a frenetic scene in which so much more is happening that initially meets the eye,” Kosann says. 

Kosann’s special projects include limited edition prints for The Carlyle Hotel and collaborations with luxury brands including scarves for Bergdorf Goodman. A Divine Comedy is her first solo exhibition. 

On exhibit through February 29 at Rosenbaum Contemporary, 2 Via Parigi, Worth Avenue, Tues – Sat, 10am to 6pm.