Back to the Cave
Dorothy Spears writes on mountains and caves in the work of Mark Tansey, exploring themes of perception and process.
I think of the painted picture as an embodiment of the very problem we face with the notion of “reality.” The problem or question is, which reality?
—Mark Tansey
Gagosian is pleased to present an exhibition of paintings and drawings by Mark Tansey, representing more than six years of work. The exhibition at 980 Madison Avenue in New York will feature one new painting—Xing (2021)—three other recent paintings, and a selection of new drawings made in graphite mixed with oil or water.
Working within the stylistic conventions of figurative painting, Tansey pursues a fascination with history by layering imagery derived from an extensive archive of printed ephemera, collages, and sketches, often depicting sublime landscapes punctuated by figures or vessels. In detailed monochromatic scenes—since 2004 he has made particular use of blue—he distorts perspective and scale, emphasizing their sensate presence while restructuring our readings of historical period and spatial orientation. Tansey paints using a subtractive process, first priming the canvas with gesso, then painting one section at a time and removing the light passages while the paint is still fluid.
Dorothy Spears writes on mountains and caves in the work of Mark Tansey, exploring themes of perception and process.
A 1994 exhibition hosted by Mark Tansey in his New York apartment foregrounded a dynamic approach to realism taking shape on the margins of an art world preoccupied with conceptualism. On display were works by four Chinese artists—Chen Danqing, Ni Jun, Yu Hong, and Liu Xiaodong.
The exhibition Figurative Diaspora, cocurated by Mark Tansey and Peter Drake, presented paintings by five Chinese artists alongside work by six Russian artists, all of whom create “unofficial,” subversive, non-state-sanctioned art, thus tracing the influences of art across borders.
Curated by Mark Tansey and Peter Drake of the New York Academy of Art, Figurative Diaspora presents works of “unofficial art”—subversive, non-state sanctioned art—created by five Soviet artists and five contemporary Chinese artists.
Alexander Wolf guides us through a multilayered new painting by the celebrated artist.