I first came upon Ukraine-native, Tel Aviv-based Zoya Cherkassky‘s infectious — often witty — folksy aesthetic in a solo exhibition at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem last year. That exhibit, Pravda, focused on the artist’s experiences and the collective experience of the over one million Russians who had immigrated to Israel. Currently on view at Fort Gansevoort in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District is Soviet Childhood, a selection of recent artworks featuring memories from Zoya Cherkassky’s childhood in the Soviet Union of the 1980’s — its final years before its collapse. The image featured above, Vareniki, was fashioned with oil on linen in 2019. Several more images from Soviet Childhood, the artist’s first solo exhibition in the US, follow:

Nuchaku, 2017, Oil on linen, 

The Voice of America, 2019, Oil on linen

Maverick, 2019, Oil on linen

Mama, 2019, Oil on linen

On the Way to School, 2019, Oil on linen

The exhibition continues through next Saturday, June 15, at Fort Gansevoort. Located at 5 Ninth Avenue, the gallery is open Tuesday – Saturday, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm.

Photos of artworks by Lois Stavsky

On view through September 16, 2019 at the National Museum of the American Indian in Lower Manhattan, “T.C. Cannon: At the Edge of America” is a celebration of the late Native American artist T.C. Cannon‘s extraordinary vision and talents. Featuring a huge range of works, both personal and political, the exhibition — curated by Karen Kramer —  delights, enlightens and, at times, disturbs. Pictured above is “Indian with Beaded Headdress, painted with acrylic on canvas in 1978, the same year that Cannon died in a car accident. Several more images from “T.C. Cannon: At the Edge of America” follow:

“Beef Issue at Fort Sill,” along with an accompanying poem, this 1973 painting references a 19th-century government ration, as the US Government often sent rancid meat to fulfill its treaty obligations.

“All the Tired Horses in the Sun,” Oil on canvas, 1971-72

“Mama and Papa Have the Going Home Shiprock Blues,” Acrylic and oil on canvas,1966

“Tale of a Bigfoot Incident in American Vernacular” — referencing the massacre of over 300 Lakota men, women and children in Pine Ridge, South Dakota —  Oil and mixed media, 1966

T.C. Cannon in his studio in Santa Fe, Mexico in 1976, © Herbert Lotz/New Mexico History Museum

Also featuring his poetry and music, “T.C. Cannon: At the Edge of America” is an exceptional tribute to an exceptional artist.

Photos of artworks by Lois Stavsky

Exploring the various roles that food plays in our minds and lives, Fountain House Gallery‘s current exhibit, At the Table, presents dozens of tasty artworks in a range of styles and mediums. The image featured above, Let’s Have a Beer Together, was painted by Fountain House artist Elizabeth Borisov. A small sampling of artworks on exhibit in At theTable follows:

Multidisciplinary artist Boo Lynn Walsh, Bali Bounty, Hand-painted and dyed Indonesian-style batik 

Queens-based multidisciplinary artist Susan Spangenberg, Chicken Run, Acrylic on found wood

Queens-based multimedia artist Issa Ibrahim, The Minstrel, Acrylic on canvas board

Multimedia artist Barry Senft, Dinner, Acrylic on canvas

Curated by Monty Blanchard and Leslie Tcheyan, the tantalizing exhibit continues through June 12. Located at 702 Ninth Avenue at 48th Street, Fountain House Gallery “provides an environment for artists living and working with mental illness to pursue their creative visions and to challenge the stigma that surrounds mental illness.” The gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday: 11am-7pm and Sunday: 1-5pm.

Photos of artworks by Lois Stavsky

I came upon Frank Boccio’s infectious aesthetic on my first visit to the Living Museum on the grounds of the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in Queens. I recently had the opportunity to find out a bit about the talented artist behind it.

When did you first begin to draw? Become interested in art?

I knew I wanted to be an artist from the time I was four years old. I began with coloring books.

What is your earliest art-related memory?

Drawing imaginary flowers. I made them up as I drew them. My mother used to give me the sheets of paper that came with the stockings that she’d bought. Those papers were my canvas. My first painting was a copy of American Gothic. My first real painting was of an American Indian. I was 15 at the time.

How did your family respond to your artistic bent?

They didn’t. My father didn’t want me to be an artist, and my mother never provided me with any art supplies — other than the papers packaged with her new stockings.

What inspired you, then, to keep doing art?

I liked it. I liked looking at art, studying it and making it.

Have you any favorite artists?

Jackson Pollock is a particular favorite. I love that he found a new way to play with paint.  Other favorite artists include: Salvador Dali and René Magritte.

Any cultural influences?

American culture…film… Andy Warhol…

How much time do you generally spend on a piece?

It depends. Some come quickly and some take years.

Have you any other passions – besides painting?

I’m passionate about photography. I also play the piano and I write music.

Have you exhibited your work?

I exhibited in Soho back in the 80’s, and in 1986 I had a solo exhibit at the National Arts Club. I also showed at Adelphi and here at the Living Museum.

How important is the viewer’s response to your art?

It doesn’t matter much.

Are you generally satisfied with your final piece?

Yup! I work up to my own standard of what’s real and what’s good.

Do you work from a preliminary sketch? Or do you just “let it flow?”

I don’t work from a sketch. I paint from my head.

How has your aesthetic evolved within the past decade?

I’m more into abstraction than I used to be.

Have you a favorite setting to work?

Anywhere there’s an easel.

Have you a formal art education?

Yes. I have a BA in Fine Arts from Oneonta State College, and I’ve taken classes at SVA. I’ve never stopped studying art or creating art. Even the 19 years I worked as a Special Education teacher, I was painting and drawing. I left the school system after getting eight separate death threats. 

What percentage of your time is devoted to art these days?

About 90%. When I’m not doing it, I’m thinking about it.

Where are you headed?

I don’t know.

Interview conducted and edited by Lois Stavsky; photos of images by Lois Stavsky

Currently on view at the Self-Taught Genius Gallery in Long Island City, Queens is New York Experienced, a delightful, eye-catching exhibition of artworks in a range of styles and media reflecting the lives of those who made New York home. A visual ode to our spirited city, New York Experienced was curated by Steffi Duarte — assistant curator of the Self-Taught Genius Gallery  — with works selected from the American Folk Art Museum’s permanent collection. The image featured above, Iceman Crucified #3, is one of several on exhibit by the noted self-taught painter Ralph Fasanella.  A sampling of images of artworks included in New York Experienced follows:

The celebrated Romania-born UFO artist Ionel Talpazan, Untitled, Oil on canvas, 1994

Bronx-born folk artist Malcah Zeldis, Coney Island or Brighton Beach, Acrylic on masonite, 1973

Maryland native Vestie Davis, Village Art Show, Oil on canvas, 1958

 Socially-conscious Italian native Louis Monza, Our Daily Bread, Oil on canvas, 1946

Bronx-native fabric artist Paula Nadelstern, Kaleidoscope XVI: More is More, Cottons & silk, 1996

A wide view of segment of gallery exhibit

New York Experienced remains on exhibit at the Self-Taught Genius Gallery through May 30. Located at 47-29 32nd Place in Long Island City, the Self-Taught Genius Gallery is open Monday through Thursday, 11am to 5pm.  Admission is free.

Photos of images by Lois Stavsky

Enchanted by Nyla Paula Isaac’s alluring, emotive portraits that we discovered while visiting the Living Museum on the grounds of the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center, we were delighted to have the opportunity to interview the wonderfully talented artist.

When did you first begin drawing? And what did you draw at the time?

I was about three when I started drawing and making paper dolls. I was still living in Trinidad in the West Indies. 

What inspired you to begin doing art?

I was shy, and it was my way of expressing myself. And when I started going to school, I wasn’t good at math or reading. But I could do art.

Do any early art-related memories stand out?

When I was about 7, a woman I knew showed me West Indian comics. They fascinated me.  And I remember winning first prize in an art show at PS 37 — my elementary school  in Springfield. Gardens.

Have you any cultural influences?

The landscapes of Trinidad are a definite influence…their mountains and ditches and the colors that I associate with them.

Any favorite artists? Artists who have influenced you?

Among my favorites are: Rembrandt, Norman Rockwell and Jacob Lawrence. Norman Rockwell has been one of  my strongest influences, although my work is much looser than his. And I don’t tend to idealize what I see. I paint my reality.

How has your family responded to your artistic bent?

They love that I am doing something with my life.

How much time do you generally spend on a piece?

Anywhere from a few hours to a few days. When I paint, I like to work all day long.

Are you generally satisfied with your final piece?

No. I always feel that I could do better.

How has your aesthetic evolved within the past decade?

It is less surreal. I also tend to work with brighter colors and a more varied palette. My aesthetic also varies according to my mental state. When I’m not well, my work takes on a bit of a surreal edge. It is looser. Schizophrenia frees me.

Which style do you prefer? Have you a preference?

No. I like them both.

What percentage of your time is devoted to art?

Just about all of it when I don’t have to deal with doctors’ appointments.

Have you a favorite setting to work?

Here at the Living Museum. Dr. Marton makes me feel free and comfortable, and I know that my work is safe here. In 2017, a fire in my apartment destroyed 17 years of my artwork.

And your favorite media?

I love working with oil paints.

Any favorite colors?

Blue and yellow; they remind me of the sky.

Do you work from a sketch when you paint?

Occasionally I sketch first. But, generally, my paintings just happen.

Have you ever studied art in a formal setting?

Yes. I graduated from the High School of Art and Design, and I earned an Associate’s Degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology. And for the past 20 years, I’ve studied off and on at the Arts Students League.

Have you found your formal art education of value?

It has definitely helped me on a technical level. It helped me master perspective, and life drawing from observation was important to my development as an artist. But now I want to do my own thing.

You’ve exhibited your paintings in quite a few spaces, and your work is included in the Education and Research Center of The Museum of Modern Art. How important is the viewers’ response to you?

It is important to me. I’d like those who view my work to appreciate its originality. 

What are some of your other interests?

Watching sitcoms from the 70”s — The Jeffersons, Archie Bunker, Diff’rent Strokes. 

Where are you headed?

I don’t know — working on developing further my skills.

Interview conducted by Lois Stavsky with City-As-School intern Alyssa Torres

Photos of artworks and of artist by Lois Stavsky

In 2018, Queens-based visual artist and art specialist Bonnie Astor traveled to Israel, Greece and Morocco. Journeys, an exhibition of watercolors and photographs reflecting Bonnie’s impressions and insights gleaned from the ancient cultures she encountered on these travels, will open on May 4 — this Saturday evening — at the Local NYC in Long Island City.

Working as an art specialist with individuals with developmental and cognitive challenges at AHRC NYC in Queens, Bonnie invited members of the AHRC community to illustrate their journeys. Several of their works will also be on view in Bonnie’s upcoming exhibition. The image above — picturing a beach in Haiti — was painted by Sydney Burford. What follows are several more artworks created — under Bonnie’s guidance — by members of AHRC NYC.

Elvin Flores depicts his ancestral homeland, Puerto Rico

And is at work on another variation of it here:

DaShawn Long visualizes a tree connecting him to nature in a favorite destination, Brooklyn’s Botanical Gardens

Edward Diodato, Going in Circles

Javed Ryner at work depicting the joy of his inner journey of self-expression

Javed Ryner’s completed piece, The Joy of the Inner Journey

Journeys opens this coming Saturday, May 4, 7-10pm, at The Local NYC, 1302 44th Avenue in Long Island City and continues through June 30, 2019.

Photos of artworks by Lois Stavsky

Perhaps the sole self-taught outsider artist of my generation to be thoroughly embraced by the “art world,” Jean-Michel Basquiat is currently the subject of two solo exhibitions in New York City. Downtown the Brant Foundation has inaugurated its New York space in the East Village with a sprawling exhibition showcasing a broad sampling of Basquiat‘s works. Pictured above is Basquiat’s 1982 painting of a face in the shape of a skull that sold at a 2017 Sotheby’s auction for $110.5 million. Other works on view that I captured while visiting the hugely impressive exhibition at the Brant Foundation include:

Irony of a Negro Policeman, Acrylic and lipstick on wood, 1981, characteristic of the artist’s political bent

Boy and Dog in a Johnnypump, Acrylic on canvas, 1982

Grillo, Acrylic, oil, paper collage, oilstick and nails on wood, 1984

Uptown Nahmad Contemporary is presenting Xerox, the first Basquiat solo exhibition to focus exclusively of the extraordinary body of work that Basquiat created using Xerox photocopies as his principal medium. What follows are several images I captured while visiting the intriguing, engaging exhibition:

Untitled, Acrylic and Xerox collage on wood, 1981

Peter and the Wolf,  Acrylic, oilstick and Xerox collage on canvas

Natchez, Acrylic, oil, wood and Xerox collage on wood doors, 1985

Installation view

Curated by Brant Foundation founder Peter M. Brant and Basquiat scholar Dieter Buchhart, the exhibition at the Brant Foundation, 421 East Sixth Street, continues through May 15. Reservations are necessary. The exhibition at Nahmad Contemporary — also curated by Dieter Buchhart — continues through May 31. Nahmad Contemporary is located at 980 Madison Avenue, off 76th Street, on the Upper East Side and is open Monday – Saturday, 10AM – 6PM.

Photos of artworks by Lois Stavsky

We first came upon Stephen Spagnoli’s mesmerizing aesthetic on the walls of the Living Museum, a treasure trove of art on the grounds of the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center. During the Living Museum’s Open House several weeks ago, we were delighted to finally meet the artist behind the artworks that had so entranced us. We have since had the chance to interview him.

When did you first begin drawing? And what did you draw at the time?

I was five when I first started to draw.  It was mostly cars and motorcycles.

What inspired you to begin doing art?

From early on, creating art was therapeutic. My father was a psychiatrist. He was also an alcoholic. We were constantly traveling from one city to another as my father’s place of employment shifted. There was no stability in my life. When I was ten, my father committed suicide. Art and music have saved my life.

Had you any cultural influences?

Not in my art. But among my musical influences are 80’s New Wave and 70’s pop.

Any favorite artists? 

I do feel a kindred spirit to Frida Kahlo in that physical pain has colored my very existence for too long—as it did hers. But while her aesthetic was realistic, mine has been abstract. 

How has your family responded to your artistic bent?

My wife and kids are proud of me. They see me as an example of perseverance.

How much time do you generally spend on a piece?

Anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. I tend to work three hours at a time.

Are you generally satisfied with your final piece?

Yes. If not, I’ll keep working on it.

And your favorite media?

Acrylic. I also like working with oil.

What percentage of your time is devoted to art?

All of it! Even if I’m watching TV, there’s a guitar in my hand.

How has your aesthetic evolved within the past decade?

Early on, it was therapy. It was an expression of my chronic pain. It has since evolved into something more. It is more true to who I am. Now I am free to paint about everything.

Have you a favorite setting to work?

I love being here in the Living Museum with other artists. I feel that I’ve found my tribe here! I’ve been coming here since 2003, and this place still amazes me.

Many of your pieces were fashioned with blacks and whites and shades of grey. Have you Any favorite colors?

Teal blue—it’s warm and cool at the same time.

Have you ever studied art in a formal setting?

No. Sometimes I wish I was trained.  But I’m, also, glad I’m not!

Where are you headed?

I’d like more people to see my work. And I’m trying to refocus on my music.

Interview conducted and edited by Lois Stavsky; photos of Stephen’s artworks by Lois Stavsky

Note: Stephen Spagnoli is one of several Living Museum artists to be featured in Bonnie Astor‘s upcoming exhibition Journeys opening May 4, 7-10pm, at The Local NYC, 1302 44th Avenue in LIC.