Night gallery opening at Fiac 2013: the Paris art scene devoted to the snoopy Americans

Last night the extensive gallery opening in Le Marais and Belville thrilled the Parisian art scene. Black dressed Fiac guys, placed in strategic corners, helped visitors to find their way around the galleries, which were anyway recognizable thanks to big bulb standing lamps outside the entrances. In the city with the highest number of art galleries per squared meter in the world, it was certainly a smart move.

While European leaders are complaining with Obama about NSA spying, what everybody has noticed was the prominence of American artists in the most influential galleries. Arron Curry at Almine Reich; N. Dash, Ajay Kurian, Matt Sheridan Smith and Josh Tosenfeldt at Art:Concept; Ryan Foerster, Hugh Scott-Douglas, Sam Moyer and Charles Ross at Bugada&Cargnel; Liz Deschenes at Campoli Presti, John Currin at Gagosian and Sam Falls at Balice Hertling.

All this shows deserve attention, and time, but what we warmly recommend are the Falls’ sun discolored blankets at Balice Hertling. After the extraordinary rope paintings shown in Zurich at the beginning of the season, the artist is still living his golden period. Daniele Balice points out that these group of works seem to dialogue with a great master such as Mark Rothko, but we would make another step back and, for we are in Paris, refer them to Paul Cezanne.

Beyond the process of painting with the natural elements (the blankets are left under the sun with pallet over them in order for the color to fade), these works represent a further development of one of the artist’s favorite concept, that is the distance, both in time and space. And if you feel like reading the lines, drawn by the stitching, as a reference to the ocean waves, well, you will not fail.

December 17, 2017