Brigade at Foundations I Winter 2024: An Online Art Fair Curated by Artsy

DYNAMIC PERSPECTIVES: ALEJANDRO GONZÁLEZ, KEN TAYLOR REYNAGA, GENE A'HERN, SERGE ATTUKWEI CLOTTEY, AND GARRETT PRUTER

 

Through the works of five distinctive artists, we are reminded of the multitude of experiences that make up the human condition; it is the aggregate contributions of many that make up the whole.

 

Alejandro González (b. 1974, Cuba) is similarly interested in processes of reinterpretation and -contextualization, particularly in series that reconstruct historical scenes founded in 1980s Cuba. From portraying discriminated Cuban minorities to staged photographic work, González's series explores hidden meanings within the archive of imagery. Exploring and challenging ideas of representation, González' photographs encompass issues of individual freedom and power, subverting established political narratives.

 

Ken Taylor Reynaga's (b. 1990, US) work envisions the Central Californian Valley as a new frontier forged by narratives of rebirth and transformation. The political in Taylor Reynaga's practice is subtle, often embodied, viscerally felt, and cited in the most private acts, and despite the bold painterly gestures and bursts of bright colour that have come to define his stylistic approach, there is a contemplative quietness in this work. For Taylor Reynaga, seemingly private moments - of significance only to those who experience them - are where we confront the broader contradictions of being human.

 

Gene A'Hern (b. 1993, Australia), currently based in Katoomba, Australia, invites viewers on a journey through the fusion of autobiographical meditation and spontaneous impulse. Oscillating between abstraction and figuration, A'Hern's work is arbitrarily engaged in modernist painting, yet looks inward to echo a unique pictorial language. Here, depth and movement reveal a lyrical illustration of place.

 

Serge Attukwei Clottey (b. 1985, Ghana), a Ghanaian artist working between Los Angeles and Accra, employs installation, drawing, sculpture, painting, and performance to explore individual freedoms, power, and simulation. Clottey's chosen materials interlace his exploration of historical legacy with object-specific work. This process of transformation and repurposing forms the very fabric of Clottey's art; challenging pre-set narratives, while allowing for new ideas and identities to form. This is evident not only in Clottey's well-known tapestries but also in the large tondo charcoal drawings and works on linen that reference historical African photography and Western impressions of African culture.

 

Garrett Pruter's (b. 1987, US) interdisciplinary practice delves into themes of memory, absence, repression, and desire. Using painting, photography, video, sound, and sculpture, Pruter exhumes traces of consciousness and desire within the collective archive of imagery. Through processes of erasing, liquifying, and rematerialising narratives, Pruter's work explores hidden meanings and inherent understandings.

 

Foundations is a seasonal online fair curated by Artsy, spotlighting fresh works from tastemaking galleries that discover and nurture rising artists. This year's fair includes presentations from 130+ galleries in 36 countries across the globe, featuring exceptional talents whose practices deserve greater recognition.

Artsy is the largest global online marketplace for discovering, buying, and selling fine artby leading artists. Artsy connects 4,000+ galleries, auction houses, art fairs, and institutions from 100+ countries with more than 2 million global art collectors and art lovers from 190+ countries. Artsy makes purchasing art welcoming, transparent, and low-friction with industry-leading technology that connects supply and demand safely and securely at a global scale. Launched in 2012, Artsy is headquartered in New York City with offices in London and Berlin.