‘Spin,’ 2006, by Joan Snyder, acrylic, papier-mache, fabric, straw, rosebuds on linen, 60 by 84 inches. Lesbian artists Cathy Begien and Kelli Williams are also exhibiting in Chelsea galleries.
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By RAFAEL RISEMBERG
Friday, March 09, 2007
While exhibits by lesbian and bisexual female artists are less common than ones by gay men, this week we can celebrate the confluence of three solo gallery shows, all within five blocks in Chelsea, by different generations of queer women.
The most venerated member of this trio is Joan Snyder, 66, exhibiting at Betty Cuningham Gallery. Her pioneering method of embedding objects into her paintings dates back to the 1970s, when few women, let alone lesbians, were accepted by the art establishment. Just a year and a half ago, her work was given a major retrospective at the Jewish Museum.
In Snyder’s current exhibit, most of the 13 oil and acrylic paintings feature rounded shapes that are meant to evoke ponds, the bottoms of which are poured paint. Embedded objects such as papier-mâché, cloth and straw, as well as twigs, herbs and flower petals that she gathered near her Woodstock studio, lend an earthy texture.
Though abstract, the works seem sexually suggestive. The abundance of ponds made me feel as though I were surrounded by vaginal openings, with the ponds’ raised burlap enclosures reminding me of labial folds. According to the gallery, the work titled “All the Things” was inspired by Snyder’s 15-year relationship with her partner, Maggie; the rosebuds embedded in the red and pink paint connote warmth and passion.
Over at Winkleman Gallery is 31-year-old Vietnamese-American artist Cathy Begien’s first-ever solo show, consisting of two videos. “Black Out” is marvelously produced—clever and refreshing in concept and hilarious in execution. In its seven frenzied minutes, Begien recounts a night of decadence in various San Francisco clubs. The artist sits in a chair, most of the time blindfolded (simulating an alcohol-induced blackout), while her real-life friends bring out props—drinks, cigarettes and the like—to help flesh out the barely rehearsed story. A highlight is the segment in which her gay friend Jose convinces her to go to a male sex club, where the androgynous Begien gets hit on by men (represented by a banana shoved in her face) who think she’s a guy.
Sad to say, her other video “My Favorites” is a bit of a bore. In 14 minutes, we see the artist in a succession of nine restaurants near her home, eating her favorite meal in each establishment. It’s like sitting through an endless home movie. Still, the strength of Begien’s other video leaves me eagerly anticipating her next show.
Of the three exhibits, the most overtly erotic is the solo premiere by 34-year-old bisexual artist Kelli Williams at Leo Koenig Gallery. Her ink and colored pencil drawings and oil paintings consist of Boschian scenes of explicit sexual debauchery—lesbian, gay and straight. The painting “Dugout,” for example, consists of a number of female couples and male couples on a baseball field, all in various states of undress, and engaged in a bizarre orgy of sorts. The painting “Crown of Horns” disturbs with its depiction of nude women whose bodies have been disfigured and reconfigured to emphasize erogenous zones. If a man had created this work, he could justifiably be accused of misogyny; interestingly, in the hands of a woman, it comes across instead as “subversive.”
Seen in succession, these three shows are remarkable for their diversity of medium, content, and degree of refinement. Take advantage of this extraordinary opportunity to gauge the queer female creative pulse.
Joan Snyder, until March 24, at Betty Cuningham Gallery, 541 W. 25th St., bettycuninghamgallery.com, 212-242-2772. Cathy Begien, until March 17, at Winkleman Gallery, 637 W. 27th St., winkleman.com, 212-643-3152. Kelli Williams, until March 24, at Leo Koenig Gallery, 545 W. 23rd St., leokoenig.com, 212-334-9255. Rafael Risemberg, Ph.D., leads gay & lesbian art gallery tours through New York Gallery Tours, nygallerytours.com, 212-946-1548. The next tour is Sat. Mar. 24.
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