Last week I took a couple days off and drove up to Massachusetts. In Sheffield, I stopped by the Colonial Farm to catch up with with Brece Honeycutt, then took in two excellent shows in Great Barrington, the next town over, at Susan Jennings and Slink Moss’s new gallery, LABSpace, and the esteemed Geoffrey Young Gallery.
[Image: Black Lake, Help Others, 2014, paint, marker, acrylic, lead, glass, colored pencil, foil on board, 14 x 11 inches.]
From Honeycutt’s studio, where we talked about the work she is work preparing for an upcoming solo show, we drove to Great Barrington. At LABSpace, I met Susan Jennings, curator and co-founder of the gallery with her art partner Slink Moss. The two artists, who show in Chelsea at Freight + Volume, are part of the great artist diaspora that the New York Times covered a few days ago. After relocating from Brooklyn with her husband Alexander Ross, Jennings wanted to help grow the art community in her new neighborhood, and since rent in downtown GB is so reasonable, she and Moss opened the storefront space to host exhibitions, performances, and other events.
Jennings walked me through “The Egg,” a group show on view through September 1 that focuses on the portrait. The exhibition statement is a quote from Picasso: “When you start with a portrait and search for a pure form, a clear volume, through successive eliminations, you arrive inevitably at the egg, Likewise, starting with the egg and following the same process in reverse, one finishes with the portrait.”
Geoffrey Young Gallery, deep in the heart of downtown GB, featured a snappy, vibrant show called “Elements of Style” included work by Lisa Sylvester, Bryan Osburn, Douglas Melini, Trevor Winkfield, Richard Hennessy, Wayne Koestenbaum, Meg Atkinson, Elliott Green, Barry Ratoff.
An important player in the Berkshires art community, Young has had the gallery for many years, but this was my first visit. He is both a poet and curator, and unites the literary and arts communities by presenting readings and other events in the gallery space. When we arrived, a reading of ONE FOOT OUT THE DOOR, the collected stories of Lewis Warsh, was in progress, and the gallery was packed– standing room only. Afterward, most of the audience headed over to the performance scheduled at LABSpace later that evening. Nice.
“The Egg,” including work by David Armstrong, Lisa Beck, Ayn S Choi, Daniella Dooling, Jason Fox, Erik Hanson, David G. Krueger, Justine Kurland, John K Lawson, LoVid, Heidi Marben, Paul W McMahon, Laurie Thomas, Jackie Saccoccio, Katy Schneider, Cindy Sherman, and Cynthia Zinser. LABSpace, Great Barrington, MA. Through September 1, 2024.
“Elements of Style,” including work by Lisa Sylvester, Bryan Osburn, Douglas Melini, Trevor Winkfield, Richard Hennessy, Wayne Koestenbaum, Meg Atkinson, Elliott Green, Barry Ratoff. Geoffrey Young Gallery, Great Barrington, MA. Through August 30, 2014.
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