Issue No. 28 – Control

What is the nature of control? The desire for it—and to be free of it—are essential parts of both life and art.

NADA (New Art Dealers Alliance) Art Fair

M+B-Hubbs-Untitled_(Nipple)_2013_18x22.25-WEB Whitney Hubbs "Untitled (Nipple)"

M+B-Hubbs-Untitled_(Bend)_2013_32x40-WEB

Whitney Hubbs Untitled (Bend)

 

 

One of the many art fairs that were open this weekend, NADA (New Art Dealers Alliance) Art Fair was at Pier 36 in Basketball City. The non-profit's showcase on the river in Basketball City. The non-profit's showcase on the river in Basketball City was very painting-centric, but there were some intriguing photographers present from some of the galleries. 

One of the many art fairs that were open this weekend, NADA (New Art Dealers Alliance) Art Fair was at pier 36 in Basketball City. The non-profit's showcase on the river in Basketball City was very painting-centric, but there were some intriguing photographers present from some of the galleries. The Los Angeles gallery M+B, who also set forth an impressive booth at AIPAD, and the Parisian New Galerie, whose impressive architectural photographs, from the French collective A Kassen sets the standard for photography at the fair.

M+B, while not solely a photographic gallery, has brought work from Whitney Hubbs, with two gorgeous black and white nudes, easily the most sensual work of the entire fair. Her work exhibits a very lyrical profession of desire, with highly effective use of curved linear softness. Her darks are dark, and her lights are light. These works express her talent in merging the two impressively, drawing the eye smoothly and slowly across her images. Her photography presses against abstraction, and by leaving narrative hidden from the viewer, Hubbs is able to create her trademark voyeuristic feel, drawing your interest in a decadent, slightly sinful manner.

Alongside M+B,The Parisian New Galerie set the standard for photography at the fair. Their collection of works from the French collective A Kassen bend and explore material in a way that is seldom seen in photography, due to the medium's native constraints.

The first series, Encirclement, focuses on this by framing their photographs within the subject of the photograph. For example, their image of a rounded storefront is housed in the same glass and wood contained in the photograph, essentially destroying their subject matter. While this process makes their photographs into tombstones, they are also capstone celebrations, giving new life into the material and ensuring a repurposed life for it.

In Equalize, The work consist of a photograph, cut and offset at its lateral bisection, with a streetlamp appearing to maintain normalcy. Eschewing digital manipulation, the artists cut and reassembled a streetlight so that their final work plays upon concepts of perception and challenges photographic truth.

Their third series, Flatten image, emulates the process of the same name in Adobe Photoshop, albeit in a direct, physical manner. In these works, four prints are superimposed over each other, with interconnected frames showing the placements of each individual image. These works draw from the varied histories of photomontage and collage in discussing digital storage and its extensive use in today's photography.

The New York Photographic market presence is noticeably absent here, however. Vicki DaSilva's print, Dude Descending a Staircase (to the Vault), is one of the few photographs exhibited by the New York galleries at NADA NYC. Obviously referencing Duchamp's famous photograph, DaSilva is a whimsical take on the history of photography.

Due to its location, the event was the most spacious of the weekend, allowing visitors a much more comfortable experience than that of Pulse, Cut/Log, or even Frieze. There is beauty in stepping aside from the spectacle. And while photography wasn't the highlight of the fair, it was present and it was heard, and heard loudly.

Review By Travis Huse

Image Courtesy of NADA 

PULSE ART FAIR

Carlos Souza's Artgrams No. 9