The Art Scene: 04.24.14
Koichiro Kurita at Ille
Koichiro Kurita, a photographer who lives in Southold, will have a solo show at Ille Arts in Amagansett from Saturday through May 10. Mr. Kurita, who was a commercial photographer in Japan, had a life-changing experience when he visited Walden Pond in 1985. “I was inspired by the freedom of the spirit and pursued fine art photography,” he has said.
He is known for his use of classical photographic processes, such as platinum palladium prints and albumin prints. Most recently he has been project director of Beyond Spheres, whose mission is to explore Thoreau’s view of nature and the New England landscape, using mid-19th-century photographic processes. The exhibition will include nine large and nine small photographs from the project.
Mr. Kurita’s work has been exhibited internationally and collected by major museums around the world. An opening reception will be held Saturday from 5 to 8 p.m.
New Work by Gornik
The Danese/Corey Gallery in Chelsea will present a solo show of recent paintings and drawings by April Gornik tomorrow through May 30. The exhibition will include five large charcoal drawings, all created this year, and seven paintings. The gallery will hold an opening reception today from 6 to 8 p.m.
Though her dramatic, unpopulated paintings and drawings of land, sea, forests, and sky are rooted in observed reality, Ms. Gornik works from photographs and memory to depict not actual places, but to create for herself and the viewer an experience of light and space.
Ms. Gornik, who lives and works on North Haven, also has a new book, “April Gornik: Drawings,” including essays by Steve Martin and Archie Rand and an interview with Lawrence Weschler, that will be available at the end of May. A book signing will be held at the gallery on May 29 from 5 to 7 p.m.
“Spring Fusion” in Sag
The Richard J. Demato Gallery in Sag Harbor will open “Spring Fusion,” a group exhibition of the winners of the Retreat’s fifth annual art competition, with a reception Saturday from 6 to 8 p.m. The artists selected by the two jurors, Sara Nightingale, owner of Sara Nightingale Gallery in Water Mill, and Scott Sandell, visual arts director of Stony Brook Southampton, are Mary Chiaramonte, Sylvia Hommert, and Kerry Sharkey-Miller. Gina Altadonna, Janet Culbertson, and Patricia Parks, who received honorable mentions, will also have work on view.
Celebrating Li-lan
The Jason McCoy Gallery’s exhibition “Li-lan: Five Decades” will close this evening with a reception from 5:30 to 8:30 that will include a gallery talk by Carter Ratcliff, author of “The Art of Li-lan: A World Achieved.” Mr. Ratcliff, a poet, critic, and teacher, will discuss his collaboration with the artist.
After the talk, Li-lan, who divides her time between East Hampton and New York, will present the linen-bound special edition of the monograph with her signed limited edition print, which accompanied the exhibition. The gallery is at 41 East 57th Street in Manhattan.