After launching a 6,000 square feet gallery in the heart of Soho, Sadie Coles HQ chose New York-based artist Rudolf Stingel to launch their new gallery in the Mayfair neighborhood of London.
Stingel’s fifth solo exhibition with Sadie Coles features a series of six large square canvases. In this new group of paintings, the artists represents animals in their natural setting, chosen from a vintage German calendar.
The Kingly Street gallery is a phenomenal introduction to the new space on Davies Street. It features the first series of square canvases which frame the gallery itself. The art inhabits the entire second floor of the gallery (imagine a 6,000 square feet space with one single painting per wall).
For a split-second, the artwork appears to be a series of photographs, but upon closer inspection, viewers can see the heavy brush strokes meticulously layered on the canvas. The oil paintings are rendered in the same faded color of the original material, creating a homogenous story behind the two images. Stingel manages to create a memory of the photographs he chose, as if this was a double experience for the viewer.
First recognized in the late 1980s for his monochromatic work, Stingel explores the relationship between nature, status, and context as explored through conceptual painting. After his 2007 exhibition at the Whitney Museum in New York, his career skyrocketed, with his “Untitled (1993)” painting setting a new auction record for the artist at over $4.75 million.
Located in the posh neighborhood of Mayfair, the glass-fronted gallery doesn’t need more than 3 paintings to catch your eye. Stingel’s work is on view until December 18th at the Sadie Coles HQ galleries in Mayfair, London.
Like this article? Check out the Jiro Takamatsu retrospective currently on view in London, or other international art exhibits.