Art

Inside the Growing Trend of Plants in Contemporary Art

Published

1 year ago

July 1, 2023

Ebony G. Patterson, installation view of “…things come to thrive…in the shedding…in the molting…” at the New York Botanical Garden, 2023. Courtesy the New York Botanical Garden

At the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG), life-size sculptures of jet-black vultures by artist Ebony G. Patterson sparkle subtly in the sunlight as viewers meander their terrain. These birds huddle around pools of blood-red plants—begonias, caladium, hypoestes, and impatiens—that appear like bruises on an otherwise pastel-colored landscape surrounding the 1902 Haupt Conservatory. Inside the historic greenhouse, more vultures have ventured, joining a molting, all-white peacock, while a zigzagging pathway is lined with frosted cast-glass sculptures of extinct plants the artist found in the garden’s archive.

Known for her collage-like works and intricate tapestries, Patterson, who is based in Chicago and Kingston, Jamaica, has been using realistic depictions of plants in her art practice for over a decade. And yet this show, “…things come to thrive…in the shedding…in the molting…,” marks the first time that she has worked with living material in her work. “Ebony’s work is seeded with images of plants, images that we can recognize. But it’s also really about that tension between our desire to control things and our inability to control things,” said curator Joanna Groarke, vice president for exhibitions and programming at the NYBG. The show is a new venture for its host institution as well: Patterson is its first artist resident to work directly with its plant collections for an installation.

Ebony G. Patterson, installation view of “…things come to thrive…in the shedding…in the molting…” at the New York Botanical Garden, 2023. Courtesy the New York Botanical Garden.

While artists have historically sought inspiration from nature for still lifes, vanitas, and landscapes, contemporary creatives are working directly with this source material to harness its new connotations. When the pandemic began, the popularity of houseplants took a parametric upswing. So, too, did artists’ figurations of flowers. Meanwhile, the effects of climate change materialized in the form of wildfires and more frequent natural disasters. Environmental artists staged elemental installations urging change and offering visions for alternative energy solutions; activists threw red paint at museum masterworks. As living beings, plants can be interpreted as extensions of our environment or of ourselves. In an uncertain environment, living material—or its likeness—has proven a useful medium with powerful resonances.

At Halsey McKay Gallery’s booth at NADA New York this past spring, Brooklyn-based artist David Kennedy Cutler presented a recent evolution in his practice: layered canvases bursting with popular houseplants that aren’t real, but certainly look it. In 2013, Cutler began using such depictions of plants alongside his and his wife’s bodies, their clothes, food, and studio or home tools as “surrogate humanity” in works that “talk about introversion and proximity of digital culture and what it was doing to us,” he explained.

Cutler’s newest pieces focus particularly on the potted plant, a metaphor for the way we try to contain nature and present only the best version of it, and ourselves. “The stuff that’s around us every day can really describe how we live,” he said. “The first vegetable I started using was kale because I thought it was really symbolic of something that was happening in culture.” It’s the duality of plants that appeals to the artist, whose greens are actually photographs of the real thing printed on acetate.

Rashid Johnson’s recent mixed-media installation series also draws on houseplants’ connection to domesticity. In Antoine’s Organ (2016), currently on view at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s group show “Presence of Plants in Contemporary Art,” a black steel grid is brimming with 285 container plants that hide a piano at its center. Curators Pieranna Cavalchini and Charles Waldheim chose to stage the eight-artist exhibition that opened this month in Boston, because of the sheer breadth of contemporary artists using ephemeral, living material.

Rashid Johnson, installation view of Antoine’s Organ, 2016, in “Presence of Plants in Contemporary Art” at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2023. Photo by Martin Parsekian. © Rashid Johnson and Hauser & Wirth. Courtesy of Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

“Plants are loaded, but also deeply personal,” explained Waldheim, who is also a professor of landscape architecture at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. “Unlike other media of cultural production, we absorb them into our bodies, and that allows them different frequencies of meaning for us.”

Other artists in the show use nature to address the climate crisis. On the museum’s façade, Australian engineer and activist Natalie Jeremijenko has installed the site-specific The Declaration of Interdependence (2023), a living sculpture of flowering nasturtiums over text that recasts organisms’ fight for survival as instead a mutually beneficial effort that helps many more species. Embracing this scientific revelation, the work argues, will allow real progress in the environmental and sociopolitical threats we face today.

Natalie Jeremijenko, installation view of The Declaration of Interdependence, 2023, in “Presence of Plants in Contemporary Art” at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2023. © Natalie Jeremijenko. Photo © Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Henrik Håkansson, installation view of A Painting of a Tree (Corylus americana), 2023, in “Presence of Plants in Contemporary Art” at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2023. © Henrik Håkansson. Photo © Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Swedish artist Henrik Håkansson also explores the the impact of humans on our environment with the 2021 wall-based work A Painting of a Tree (Ailanthus altissima), for which he inserted leafy cuttings of tree of heaven, a native Chinese plant that is considered invasive in Massachusetts, in plastic bottles attached to canvas. The poetic piece urges viewers to question what the term “invasive” really means—whether nature, or litter, is the greater problem.

The rise in plants as artworks has opened greater opportunity for these conversations, with the medium as a familiar equalizer. Outside of art spaces, landscapes offer even more public reach to explore the same social issues. “Historically, gardens have been defined by their boundaries,” said Viviane Stappmanns, co-curator of the current Vitra Design Museum exhibition in Germany, “Garden Futures: Designing with Nature,” featuring works by artists including Derek Jarman and Zheng Guogu that investigate gardens as testing grounds for issues of sustainability, social justice, and equity. “For many gardeners, activists, and social entrepreneurs, the future—and in some cases, the present—lies in creating interconnected human and natural environments organized in ecosocial networks.”

Ebony G. Patterson, installation view of …fester…, 2023, in “…things come to thrive…in the shedding…in the molting…” at the New York Botanical Garden, 2023. Courtesy of the New York Botanical Garden.

Patterson’s work, too, evokes the idea of an interconnected human and natural environment, drawing on the political and historical resonances in plants, especially as an analog to enslaved Black bodies. “So many of these plants that we love in our houses came on the same ships that bodies came over on in the great age of discovery,” said the artist.

In the stately library on the NYBG’s 250-acre campus, Patterson’s 2023 work …fester… displays this sentiment around exploitation clearly. One side of the installation is an embellished tapestry of floral wallpapers and gold-leaf skeletal parts; the other is a slump of more than 1,000 red lace–gloved hands, embedded with black cast-glass thistles. Underneath the beauty of cultivated gardens is a more nuanced conversation about origins and labor. “So much of the language used in conversations around the way we think about gardens in terms of the socioeconomic hierarchies we’ve inherited could be equated to the way we think about people,” she continued.

Plants, after all, are inherently political. Like the root systems that feed them, there is always something more underneath the surface.

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Art

Calvin Lucyshyn: Vancouver Island Art Dealer Faces Fraud Charges After Police Seize Millions in Artwork

Published

22 hours ago

September 13, 2024

Harry Miller

In a case that has sent shockwaves through the Vancouver Island art community, a local art dealer has been charged with one count of fraud over $5,000. Calvin Lucyshyn, the former operator of the now-closed Winchester Galleries in Oak Bay, faces the charge after police seized hundreds of artworks, valued in the tens of millions of dollars, from various storage sites in the Greater Victoria area.

Alleged Fraud Scheme

Police allege that Lucyshyn had been taking valuable art from members of the public under the guise of appraising or consigning the pieces for sale, only to cut off all communication with the owners. This investigation began in April 2022, when police received a complaint from an individual who had provided four paintings to Lucyshyn, including three works by renowned British Columbia artist Emily Carr, and had not received any updates on their sale.

Further investigation by the Saanich Police Department revealed that this was not an isolated incident. Detectives found other alleged victims who had similar experiences with Winchester Galleries, leading police to execute search warrants at three separate storage locations across Greater Victoria.

Massive Seizure of Artworks

In what has become one of the largest art fraud investigations in recent Canadian history, authorities seized approximately 1,100 pieces of art, including more than 600 pieces from a storage site in Saanich, over 300 in Langford, and more than 100 in Oak Bay. Some of the more valuable pieces, according to police, were estimated to be worth $85,000 each.

Lucyshyn was arrested on April 21, 2022, but was later released from custody. In May 2024, a fraud charge was formally laid against him.

Artwork Returned, but Some Remain Unclaimed

In a statement released on Monday, the Saanich Police Department confirmed that 1,050 of the seized artworks have been returned to their rightful owners. However, several pieces remain unclaimed, and police continue their efforts to track down the owners of these works.

Court Proceedings Ongoing

The criminal charge against Lucyshyn has not yet been tested in court, and he has publicly stated his intention to defend himself against any pending allegations. His next court appearance is scheduled for September 10, 2024.

Impact on the Local Art Community

The news of Lucyshyn’s alleged fraud has deeply affected Vancouver Island’s art community, particularly collectors, galleries, and artists who may have been impacted by the gallery’s operations. With high-value pieces from artists like Emily Carr involved, the case underscores the vulnerabilities that can exist in art transactions.

For many art collectors, the investigation has raised concerns about the potential for fraud in the art world, particularly when it comes to dealing with private galleries and dealers. The seizure of such a vast collection of artworks has also led to questions about the management and oversight of valuable art pieces, as well as the importance of transparency and trust in the industry.

As the case continues to unfold in court, it will likely serve as a cautionary tale for collectors and galleries alike, highlighting the need for due diligence in the sale and appraisal of high-value artworks.

While much of the seized artwork has been returned, the full scale of the alleged fraud is still being unraveled. Lucyshyn’s upcoming court appearances will be closely watched, not only by the legal community but also by the wider art world, as it navigates the fallout from one of Canada’s most significant art fraud cases in recent memory.

Art collectors and individuals who believe they may have been affected by this case are encouraged to contact the Saanich Police Department to inquire about any unclaimed pieces. Additionally, the case serves as a reminder for anyone involved in high-value art transactions to work with reputable dealers and to keep thorough documentation of all transactions.

As with any investment, whether in art or other ventures, it is crucial to be cautious and informed. Art fraud can devastate personal collections and finances, but by taking steps to verify authenticity, provenance, and the reputation of dealers, collectors can help safeguard their valuable pieces.

Art

Ukrainian sells art in Essex while stuck in a warzone – BBC.com

Published

2 weeks ago

September 2, 2024

Harry Miller

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Ukrainian sells art in Essex while stuck in a warzone BBC.com

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Art

Somerset House Fire: Courtauld Gallery Reopens, Rest of Landmark Closed

Published

4 weeks ago

August 18, 2024

Harry Miller

The Courtauld Gallery at Somerset House has reopened its doors to the public after a fire swept through the historic building in central London. While the gallery has resumed operations, the rest of the iconic site remains closed “until further notice.”

On Saturday, approximately 125 firefighters were called to the scene to battle the blaze, which sent smoke billowing across the city. Fortunately, the fire occurred in a part of the building not housing valuable artworks, and no injuries were reported. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the fire.

Despite the disruption, art lovers queued outside the gallery before it reopened at 10:00 BST on Sunday. One visitor expressed his relief, saying, “I was sad to see the fire, but I’m relieved the art is safe.”

The Clark family, visiting London from Washington state, USA, had a unique perspective on the incident. While sightseeing on the London Eye, they watched as firefighters tackled the flames. Paul Clark, accompanied by his wife Jiorgia and their four children, shared their concern for the safety of the artwork inside Somerset House. “It was sad to see,” Mr. Clark told the BBC. As a fan of Vincent Van Gogh, he was particularly relieved to learn that the painter’s famous Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear had not been affected by the fire.

Blaze in the West Wing

The fire broke out around midday on Saturday in the west wing of Somerset House, a section of the building primarily used for offices and storage. Jonathan Reekie, director of Somerset House Trust, assured the public that “no valuable artefacts or artworks” were located in that part of the building. By Sunday, fire engines were still stationed outside as investigations into the fire’s origin continued.

About Somerset House

Located on the Strand in central London, Somerset House is a prominent arts venue with a rich history dating back to the Georgian era. Built on the site of a former Tudor palace, the complex is known for its iconic courtyard and is home to the Courtauld Gallery. The gallery houses a prestigious collection from the Samuel Courtauld Trust, showcasing masterpieces from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Among the notable works are pieces by impressionist legends such as Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, and Vincent Van Gogh.

Somerset House regularly hosts cultural exhibitions and public events, including its popular winter ice skating sessions in the courtyard. However, for now, the venue remains partially closed as authorities ensure the safety of the site following the fire.

Art lovers and the Somerset House community can take solace in knowing that the invaluable collection remains unharmed, and the Courtauld Gallery continues to welcome visitors, offering a reprieve amid the disruption.

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