Asami Shoji et al.

Gestures of Resistance

★★★★☆

On until 25 November 2023

In this run-of-the-mill commercial group show, the bijou paintings by Asami Shoji are as playful as they are haunting. In one, Cerberus stands at the shore of the Styx dreaming that he, too, could one day be free from his fate but nobody throws him a ball. In another, a reclining nude anxiously waits to meet her fate with a lion but Saint Jerome is nowhere in sight. There’s a scene caught in the wings of the ballet stage that could be the start of a gang rape, a death dance, or a tender embrace. The figures appear as though in x-ray and helplessly foretell their own ends.

The acute sepias, yellows, and greens rendered on gesso and clay surfaces hide ghostly narratives. Following these stories between the works of five other artists makes them even more intriguing. In one panel, a boy reaches out as if to probe Christ’s wounds. On second glance, the allegory is even richer and more confusing. On third, the tale starts over again.


notes and notices are short and curt exhibition reviews. Read more:

Merike Estna: The House of Leaking Sky at the Estonian pavilion, Venice ★★☆☆☆

Merike Estna

The House of Leaking Sky

★★☆☆☆

A racket not useful for sport.

Turner Prize 2024 at Tate Britain ★★☆☆☆

Pio Abad, Claudette Johnson, Jasleen Kaur, Delaine Le Bas

Turner Prize 2024

★★☆☆☆

Even the artists approach this edition with ennui.

Teewon Ahn and Ibrahim Meïté Sikely at Gianni Manhattan and P21 at Project Native Informant ★★★☆☆

Teewon Ahn and Ibrahim Meïté Sikely

★★★☆☆

These works are as garish as they are fun to look at.

Yvonne Mabs Francis: Breakdown at Yamamoto Keiko Rochaix ★★☆☆☆Yvonne Mabs

Yvonne Mabs Francis

Breakdown

★★☆☆☆

Does an artist get to participate in the construction of her outsider status?

Thibault Aedy, Dilara Koz at Filet ★★★☆☆

Thibault Aedy, Dilara Koz

Caressed and Polished and Drained and Washed

★★★☆☆

These ideas can’t last beyond the pop-up show’s closing date.

Will Gabaldón, Flicker at Union Pacific ★★★☆☆

Will Gabaldón

Flicker

★★★☆☆

Gabaldón reinvents the pastoral for the Instagram generation.

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