New York’s Bortolami Gallery is well on its way to disrupting the traditional five-week exhibition model. Since the end of last year, the gallery has been pairing different artists with a city to stage work over the course of a year. The experimental platform, called ‘Artist/City’, presents work in two phases and thus charts a creative evolution of each artist, while also giving visitors reason to return during the time.
Bortolami unveiled its first pairing with a bang – Daniel Buren in Miami, opening during Art Basel last year. Comprising a series of new works in which Buren uses striped linen fabric to mimic his painted linear pieces, the exhibition is installed at The M Building, a former 1950s manufacturing warehouse restored by architect Chad Oppenheim, in the heart of Miami’s Wynwood district.
The exhibition’s second phase saw Buren install five colourful porticos throughout the gallery space, a site-specific piece entitled Passage aller-retour. The installation toys with the viewer’s idea of space, while also considering the stripe as a different visual tool that Buren uses to explore the notion of art.
In May, the gallery unveiled its second union: the Los Angeles-based artist Eric Wesley in St Louis. Wesley has pitched up within an empty Taco Bell restaurant and filled it with five new tondo paintings that greatly resemble an open burrito. Employing a variety of painting techniques, Wesley depicts different ingredients on each of the wood panels in abstract fashion.
Wesley’s year-long intervention includes several projects, such as casting a bronze bell for the Spanish Colonial structure, planting a vegetable patch for the grounds and creating a series of abstract sculptures that respond to the local Pizza Hut, located across the road.
With future collaborations including Barbara Kasten in Chicago and Nicolás Guagnini in San Francisco, 'Artist/City' presents a new chance to get to know these artists a whole lot better.
The gallery’s first pairing, ’Daniel Buren/Miami’ is currently installed at The M Building, a former 1950s manufacturing warehouse restored by architect Chad Oppenheim, in the heart of Miami’s Wynwood district. Pictured: a view of Buren’s site-specific piece, entitled Passage aller-retour
Buren earlier unveiled a series of new works made using striped linen fabric to mimic his painted linear pieces
Open until the end of November, the exhibition toys with the viewer’s idea of space, while also considering the stripe as a visual tool that Buren uses to explore the notion of art
The second ’Artist/City’ pairing sees the Los Angeles-based artist Eric Wesley take over an old Taco Bell restaurant in St Louis
Wesley’s year-long intervention includes several projects, such as casting a bronze bell for the Spanish Colonial structure, planting a vegetable patch for the grounds and creating a series of abstract sculptures (pictured) that respond to the local Pizza Hut across the road
The space also contains five new tondo paintings that greatly resemble an open burrito
Employing a variety of painting techniques, Wesley depicts different ingredients on each of the wood panels in abstract fashion
INFORMATION
’Daniel Buren/Miami’ is on view until 30 November. ’Eric Wesley/St Louis’ is on view until April 2017. For more information, please visit the Bortolami Gallery’s website
-
This collection of slow furniture is a powerful ode to timeA serene exhibition of David Dolcini's 'Time-made' collection has fast-tracked its place into our hearts and homes
-
Is the Pragma P1 the most sustainable watch yet?Geneva-based brand Pragma combines industrial design with real sustainable credentials
-
Unlike the gloriously grotesque imagery in his films, Yorgos Lanthimos’ photographs are quietly beautifulAn exhibition at Webber Gallery in Los Angeles presents Yorgos Lanthimos’ photography
-
Desert X 2025 review: a new American dream grows in the Coachella ValleyWill Jennings reports from the epic California art festival. Here are the highlights
-
In ‘The Last Showgirl’, nostalgia is a drug like any otherGia Coppola takes us to Las Vegas after the party has ended in new film starring Pamela Anderson, The Last Showgirl
-
‘American Photography’: centuries-spanning show reveals timely truthsAt the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, Europe’s first major survey of American photography reveals the contradictions and complexities that have long defined this world superpower
-
Miami’s new Museum of Sex is a beacon of open discourseThe Miami outpost of the cult New York destination opened last year, and continues its legacy of presenting and celebrating human sexuality
-
Sundance Film Festival 2025: The films we can't wait to watchSundance Film Festival, which runs 23 January - 2 February, has long been considered a hub of cinematic innovation. These are the ones to watch from this year’s premieres
-
What is RedNote? Inside the social media app drawing American users ahead of the US TikTok banDownloads of the Chinese-owned platform have spiked as US users look for an alternative to TikTok, which faces a ban on national security grounds. What is Rednote, and what are the implications of its ascent?
-
Architecture and the new world: The Brutalist reframes the American dreamBrady Corbet’s third feature film, The Brutalist, demonstrates how violence is a building block for ideology
-
What to look out for at Art Basel Miami Beach 2024Art Basel Miami Beach returns for its inaugural edition under new director Bridget Finn, running 6-8 December, with 286 international exhibitors and a packed week of parties, pop-up, and special projects
