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    Inhabitants of a Fictional World Search for Understanding in Damien Cifelli’s Vibrant Paintings

    “A guide to the Unknown Other.” All images courtesy of Damien Cifelli, shared with permission

    Inhabitants of a Fictional World Search for Understanding in Damien Cifelli’s Vibrant Paintings

    March 28, 2025

    Art

    Kate Mothes

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    In Tarogramma, the imaginary world conceived by Damien Cifelli (previously) as a setting for his vibrant paintings, plants are plentiful, but animals don’t exist. The landscapes are as diverse and enigmatic as its inhabitants, who commune with bodies of water, traverse the desert in a suit, and size up an enigmatic object on a dinner plate.

    Cifelli’s stylish figures investigate their environment to try to understand their place within it. Many of the paintings shown here were recently exhibited at Spinello Projects in Miami, emphasizing the artist’s recent focus on analyzing what life is like in this fictive world.

    “I make a map in my mind but each time I raise my head it disappears”

    “In Tarogramma, symbols are imbued with disassociated meanings unrelated to what we think they could be,” says a statement for his show. “Iconography, such as flags or emblems, represent regions that exist not as physical places but as ideas or states of mind.” This world is devoid of ethnic, cultural, or gender hierarchies, and identity is fluid and chosen, which encourages constant transformation.

    Occasionally, Cifelli’s paintings reference famous artworks like “Wanderer before the Sea of Ice,” which nods to German Romanticist artist Caspar David Friedrich’s 1818 painting, “Wanderer Above a Sea of Fog.” Capturing the solipsism of the 19th-century work, Cifelli translates the view into an arctic scene of jagged ice, with the central figure wearing a coat decorated in symbols evocative of biological forms.

    Explore more on Cifelli’s website and Instagram.

    “The trick is to know what you are looking for”

    “A new route to the interior”

    “Everything that happens will happen today”

    “Dream Animal”

    “Green Fingers, Unit 14”

    “Infinite Ground”

    “At the foot of the mountain, the land speaks”

    “Wanderer before the Sea of Ice”

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    Robert Peterson Summons Black Resilience and Tenderness in Vibrant Portraits

    “The Prophet” (2025), oil on canvas, 48 x 30 inches. All images courtesy of the artist and albertz benda, New York and Los Angeles, shared with permission

    Robert Peterson Summons Black Resilience and Tenderness in Vibrant Portraits

    March 20, 2025

    Art

    Kate Mothes

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    In characteristically glistening blue hues, Robert Peterson’s striking portraits invite us into emotionally complex inner worlds.

    Peterson centers the Black body in paintings that challenge dominant narratives surrounding Black lives, celebrating beauty, compassion, and resilience. Tender portraits reveal the essential humanity of vulnerability and individuality with an emphasis on themes of empathy and togetherness.

    “Protect Those Tears” (2025), oil on canvas, 14 x 11 inches

    Peterson’s choice of oils, a traditional portrait medium, embeds his work in the continuum of Western painting. However, instead of highly stylized scenes or elaborate ornamentation, his figures are often set against bold, flat backgrounds and they appear half-dressed or in casual clothes, unguarded and relaxed.

    In his forthcoming solo exhibition, We Are Forever at albertz benda, Peterson examines familial connections, paying homage to the strength and dedication inherent in the relationships between siblings and parents and their children.

    “At the core of this new body of work is a profound sense of intimacy, offering a thoughtful reflection on presence and the enduring significance of his subjects’ stories,” the gallery says.

    We Are Forever runs from March 27 to May 3 in New York. Find more on the artist’s website and Instagram.

    “Untitled (Purple)” (2025), oil on canvas, 18 x 14 inches

    “Water Me” (2025), oil on canvas, 24 x 20 inches

    “Hamsa Tattoo” (2025, oil on canvas, 28 x 22 inches

    “Untitled (Black)” (2025), oil on canvas, 18 x 14 inches

    Installation view of works at the Dallas Art Fair

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    A Visit to Amy Sherald’s Studio Revels in Her Commitment to Beauty

    All images courtesy of Art21

    A Visit to Amy Sherald’s Studio Revels in Her Commitment to Beauty

    March 19, 2025

    ArtFilm

    Grace Ebert

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    From the studio to her childhood bedroom in Columbus, Georgia, to the museum, a new film from Art21 presents a broad portrait of Amy Sherald. The artist is perhaps best known for her depiction of former First Lady Michelle Obama and her signature images of Black Americans rendered in grayscale.

    In “Singular Moments,” the Art21 team peers into Sherald’s process and captures the intricacies of creating a work. Reference photos taped to a wall and paint squirted onto white paper plates accompany the artist as she works on her increasingly large-scale canvases.

    Sherald frequently paints people she knows, beginning with their faces and eyes before moving on to the rest of their figures. As the title of the film suggests, her focus is on a single moment of beauty. “I think beautiful paintings are important,” she says in the film. “I say figuration is like the soul food of art making. It’s what takes you back home and what you eat when you need comfort, and we all need that at some point.”

    The film comes ahead of Sherald’s first solo exhibition at a New York museum, American Sublime, which will present about 50 works from 2007 to today next month at the Whitney Museum of American Art. In addition to a visit to the artist’s parents’ home, filled with grade-school pictures and teenage art projects, viewers also witness the creation of some of her more recent works, particularly those exploring what it means to be an American.

    Watch “Singular Moments” above, and be sure to read our conversation with the artist in which she discusses anxiety and finding respite in her work.

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    Sparse Brushstrokes Give Rise to Thick Impasto in Jose Lerma’s Minimal Portraits

    “Leidy” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 48 x 36 inches. All images courtesy of Jose Lerma and Nino Mier Gallery, shared with permission

    Sparse Brushstrokes Give Rise to Thick Impasto in Jose Lerma’s Minimal Portraits

    March 13, 2025

    Art

    Grace Ebert

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    When Jose Lerma encountered “Reception of the Grand Condé by Louis XIV” by Jean-Léon Gérôme at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, he found himself drawn to the figures tucked far behind the crowd. Known for his meticulous realism, Gérôme rendered these small characters with minimal brushstrokes, a decision that has influenced Lerma’s work for more than a decade.

    Exaggerating the sparse quality of the figures, Lerma (previously) paints portraits in wide swaths of acrylic applied with brooms and industrial tools. The new works retain the contrasts of earlier pieces as well-defined strokes sweep across the burlap to form heavy, impasto ridges.

    “Yamila” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 72 x 48 inches

    At Nino Mier Gallery in Brussels, Lerma’s new solo exhibition Bayamonesque presents the culmination of his current style. The title references his upbringing in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, and how we think about resemblance. Painting both real subjects and manufactured characters, the portraits reference those who might otherwise be relegated to the background, stripping down their likeness to only what’s necessary.

    Vacillating between figurative and abstract, the compositions are what Lerma refers to as “the summary of a portrait…The abstract painter in me is, above all, drawn to certain people for specific features that can be broken down to their bare minimum as paintable elements: an expressive cowl, a striking nose, a distinctive shape of lips.”

    Bayamonesque is on view from March 14 to April 17 in Brussels. Find more from Lerma on Instagram.

    “Celimar” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 32 x 24 inches

    “Leda” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 72 x 48 inches

    “Clarisa” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 32 x 24 inches

    “Felo” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 24 x 16 inches

    “Ismaela” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 32 x 24 inches

    “Rania” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 32 x 24 inches

    “Fernanda” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 24 x 16 inches

    “Lisi” (2025), acrylic on burlap, 48 x 36 inches

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    Regal Portraits Evoke Myth and Power in Simone Elizabeth Saunders’ Hand-Tufted Textiles

    “Girl with Butterflies” (2024), silk and wool yarn on muslin warp, 50 x 40 inches. All images courtesy of the artist and Claire Oliver Gallery, shared with permission

    Regal Portraits Evoke Myth and Power in Simone Elizabeth Saunders’ Hand-Tufted Textiles

    March 12, 2025

    ArtCraft

    Kate Mothes

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    Emblazoned with vibrant patterns and words like “TRUTH” and “LOVE,” Simone Elizabeth Saunders explores Black identity in relation to kinship, power, and survival. Her hand-tufted textiles (previously) merge cultural narratives and history with mythology, nostalgia, and personal experiences.

    Saunders predominantly focuses on women, who she portrays in bold portraits and within fantastical, empowering scenarios. In recent works like “Girl with Butterflies” and “She Manifests Her Destiny,” figures embrace and commune with totem-like snakes, insects, and plants.

    “She Reveals” (2022), hand-tufted velvet, acrylic, and wool yarn on rug warp, 65 x 60.5 x 1 inches

    Rooted in the myriad histories of the global Black diaspora and rich textile traditions throughout countless cultures, Saunders employs a craft technique historically relegated to a role “beneath” fine art in order to turn the tables on how we comprehend influence, identity, and artistic expression.

    Saunders is represented by Claire Oliver Gallery, and you can explore more work on the artist’s Instagram.

    “(Be)Longing IV” (2023), hand-tufted acrylic, cotton, wool, and metallic yarn on cotton rug warp, 20 x 1 x 30 inches

    “Girl with Hummingbirds” (2024), silk and wool yarn on muslin warp, 50 x 40 inches

    “Internal Reflections” (2022), hand-tufted velvet, acrylic, and wool yarn on rug warp, 66 x 62.5 x 1 inches

    “(Be)Longing VIII” (2024), hand-tufted acrylic, cotton, wool, and metallic yarn on cotton rug warp, 20 x 1 x 30 inches

    “Release in Darkness” (2022), hand-tufted velvet and acrylic yarn on muslin warp, 66 x 55 inches

    “She Manifests Her Destiny” (2024), silk and wool yarn on textile backing, 50 x 40 inches

    “Break Away at Dawn” (2023), hand-tufted velvet, acrylic, and wool yarn on muslin warp, 66 x 56 x 1 inches

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    Vasilisa Romanenko’s Lush Portraits Wrap Common Birds in Decadent Patterns

    “American Crow” (2025),
    acrylic on canvas, 8 x 8 inches. All images courtesy of Vasilisa Romanenko and Arch Enemy Arts, shared with permission

    Vasilisa Romanenko’s Lush Portraits Wrap Common Birds in Decadent Patterns

    March 11, 2025

    ArtNature

    Grace Ebert

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    Beauty and nature’s resilience are at the core of Vasilisa Romanenko’s work. The Connecticut-based artist paints faithful depictions of common yet dignified birds amid clusters of fruits and flowers, exploring the power of opulence in times of upheaval.

    A stately crow poses amid rust-colored roses, a great blue heron poses amid clusters of tangerines and lilies, and a small warbler perches amid pink poppies. Referencing the defiantly decorative works of English textile designer William Morris (1834–1896), Romanenko embraces the entrancing nature of decadent patterns.

    “Great Blue Heron” (2025), acrylic on canvas, 22 x 28 inches

    “I want my work to feel like an escape from everyday life, like taking a moment to be still and appreciate nature,” she says about her solo exhibition, BIRDS & BLOOMS, at Arch Enemy Arts. Enveloped by flora at full bloom, the winged subjects exude a sense of calm and strength as they perch and prepare for their next flight.

    BIRDS & BLOOMS is on view through March 30 in Philadelphia. Find more from Romanenko on her website and Instagram.

    “Northern Mockingbird” (2025), acrylic on canvas, 11 x 14 inches

    “Black-capped Chickadee” (2025), acrylic on canvas, 5 x 7 inches

    “Orange-crowned Warbler” (2025), acrylic on canvas, 5 x 7 inches

    “Dark-eyed Juncos” (2025), acrylic on canvas, 9 x 12 inches

    “Palm Warbler” (2025), acrylic on canvas, 8 x 10 inches

    “Brewer’s Blackbird” (2025), acrylic on canvas, 9 x 12 inches

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    Intricate Postage Stamp Tattoos by Ash Aurich Are an Ode to Art History

    All images courtesy of Ash Aurich, shared with permission

    Intricate Postage Stamp Tattoos by Ash Aurich Are an Ode to Art History

    March 10, 2025

    ArtIllustration

    Kate Mothes

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    As the saying goes, if one knows very little about something, their knowledge could fit on the back of a postage stamp. But for tattoo artist Ash Aurich, the minuscule format provides a readymade canvas and frame ripe for experimentation, intrigue, and beauty.

    Using a fine line technique with delicate shading, Aurich outlines the unmistakable scalloped edges of the ubiquitous, tiny adhesives, filling rectangular compositions with Renaissance-inspired romantic and religious figures.

    A deep appreciation for iconic artworks inspired Aurich to create tiny odes to art history. “I wanted to be able to capture the essence of these masterpieces in a unique and engaging way,” she tells Colossal. “Having the opportunity to tattoo these designs on others who appreciate art is a rewarding experience.”

    Aurich’s preferred subject matter is people, especially the dramatic and often symbolic figures in art historical masterworks by the likes of Johannes Vermeer or Caravaggio. “The attention to detail, use of light and shadow, and mastery of human anatomy create stunning, lifelike representations that translate beautifully into tattoos,” the artist says. She shares that it’s important for the emotions and narratives of each portrait to resonate with the wearer, especially at their small scale.

    Currently in residency at Atelier Eva, Aurich has opened her books for March and April in New York City. The tattoos seen here are all flash designs, but she creates custom compositions, too. See more on Instagram.

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    In ‘Flying High,’ Tyler D. Ballon’s Portraits Parallel Sports, History, Identity, and Patriotism

    “Fellow Countrymen” (2024-25), oil on canvas, 78 x 73 inches. Photos by Genevieve Hanson. All images courtesy of Tyler Ballon and Jeffrey Deitch, New York, shared with permission

    In ‘Flying High,’ Tyler D. Ballon’s Portraits Parallel Sports, History, Identity, and Patriotism

    February 21, 2025

    ArtHistory

    Kate Mothes

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    In Édouard Manet’s painting “The Execution of Emperor Maximilian” — actually a series of works completed between 1867 and 1869 — a firing squad dramatically executes the Hapsburg royal and two generals. Maximilian became Emperor of Mexico at the urging of Napoleon III, following the second French intervention in the country between 1861 and 1867.

    For his forthcoming solo exhibition, Flying High at Jeffrey Deitch, New Jersey-based artist Tyler D. Ballon recreates the 19th-century painter’s work in a 16-foot-wide diptych titled “Right to Bear Arms/Second Amendment” that portrays two young Black men protecting three young Black women, who look directly at the viewer with dignity, in defiance of objectification.

    “Right to Bear Arms/Second Amendment” (2024-25), oil on canvas, diptych, overall 70 x 193.5 inches

    “Seeing a gun pointed at a person of color is something that’s familiar to American history,” Ballon says in a statement. “But having an African American man holding a rifle is distinctively different. The work challenges perceptions of Black men bearing arms, reclaiming their image as patriots and protectors, and pays homage to the Civil War troops.”

    Patriotism and narrative weave throughout Ballon’s architectonic works, drawing on the legacy of history painting, African Americans in the Civil War, and identity through the lens of contemporary sports. The artist says:

    While creating these paintings, I realized there is an interesting dichotomy between sports being a tool for success and having Black bodies being used to advance America’s ambition. My paintings challenge stereotypes that confine people of color to achieving success solely through physical prowess or musical talent. These works celebrate the resilience of young African Americans who carve out better lives using the resources available to them.

    Ballon excavates Black American history, paying homage to those who fought for citizenship and freedom. Through football, a quintessentially American sport, he evokes military ideologies that also offer young men “an avenue to channel their aggression, build camaraderie, and find fulfillment,” he says.” Games evoke battles; coaches are likened to generals or lieutenants; and key players are assigned to be offensive or defensive “captains,” leading their teammates and relaying calls from the sidelines.

    “Sound of Victory” (2025), oil paint on canvas, 82 x 78 inches

    Choosing his hometown of Jersey City’s Abraham Lincoln High School to represent a metaphorical and symbolic regiment, Ballon nods to Black Civil War veterans who fought for African Americans’ rights. Football is also channeled as a means for young people to advance to higher education and further their future prospects. “The children in these paintings are a testament to progress and a source of hope for the future,” the artist says.

    In “Before the Battle,” players suit up and a coach stands off to the left, looking directly back at us, as do many of the determined players. In “Fellow Countrymen,” we see three distinguished players who also make eye contact, geared up and ready to take on whatever the opposing team throws their way. Our perspective is always just a little bit lower than eye level with the figures, encouraging us to view them in subtle reverence, as we would with many of art history’s grand portraits and battle scenes.

    Ballon grasps the troubled legacy of some early 19th-century history painting, which prior to the widespread use of photography was one way that the European public could comprehend their nations’ overseas colonial empires, all of which deeply and violently impacted Black and Indigenous peoples.

    History painting was seen as a form of documentation, sometimes criticized for its lack of accuracy with regard to depictions of battles, but it proved a powerful method for furthering white European imperial attitudes. For Ballon, appropriating the genre yields a powerful tool, turning the tables on both who makes and is portrayed in the monumental scenes.

    Detail of “Right to Bear Arms/Second Amendment”

    Ballon also celebrates marching bands, historically used to convey orders and signals to military troops, which over time assumed the role of morale- and unity-boosters. “I choose to portray the marching band of Malcom X Shabazz High School for their renowned excellence in performance, their New Jersey roots, and their namesake, Malcom X, a pivotal leader during the Civil Rights Movement whose ideology helped shape African American culture and history,” Ballon says.

    The title of the exhibition, Flying High, reflects the aspiration to rise above the adversities of inner city life. “My work focuses on the lives and experiences of the people in my community,” Ballon says. “I believe in capturing moments that can inspire and validate their existence, extending their stories beyond geographic and temporal boundaries. I want young people to see themselves as worthy of being immortalized in art—a recognition that transcends time.”

    Flying High runs from March 8 to April 19 in New York City. See more on the artist’s website and Instagram.

    “Before the Battle” (2024-25), oil on canvas, diptych, overall 90 x 134 inches

    Detail of “Before the Battle”

    Detail of “Sound of Victory”

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