A MAZE ZANINE, AMAZE ZANING, A-MEZZANING, MEZA-9
SEPTEMBER 9 – OCTOBER 8, 2022
DAVID ZWIRNER, NEW YORK
PRESS RELEASE
A MAZE ZANINE, AMAZE ZANING, A-MEZZANING, MEZA-9
SEPTEMBER 9 – OCTOBER 8, 2022
DAVID ZWIRNER, NEW YORK
David Zwirner and Performance Space New York are pleased to present A Maze Zanine, Amaze Zaning, A-Mezzaning, Meza-9, a group benefit exhibition that explores the joyful dynamics between performance and painting, organized by Ei Arakawa, Kerstin Brätsch, Nicole Eisenman, and Laura Owens at the gallery’s 519 West 19th Street location in New York. The whimsical design—conceived collaboratively by the four organizers—unconventionally foregrounds the gallery as a site of play and experimentation. A durational performance of its own, the exhibition buildout took place over several weeks and bears the artistic signature of each of the organizers. Explosions of paint and vibrant color are exemplified through an organic and handmade approach, injecting the space with an enterprising creative spirit that evokes Performance Space’s own radical history and programming. Steel decks—typically used for staging and seating at Performance Space—have been integrated into the space as a fully accessible viewing platform, which intersects walls and acts as an installation in itself.
This exhibition will feature a range of works, the sale of which will benefit Performance Space. The artists include: Ei Arakawa, Math Bass, Katherine Bernhardt, Judith Bernstein, Kerstin Brätsch, Cecily Brown, Theresa Chromati, Leidy Churchman, Matt Connors, Patricia Cronin, Thomas Eggerer, Nicole Eisenman, Hadi Fallahpisheh, Rochelle Feinstein, Keltie Ferris, Wade Guyton, K8 Hardy, Jamian Juliano-Villani, Sanya Kantarovsky, Marie Karlberg, Deborah Kass, Jutta Koether, Maggie Lee, Nick Mauss, Marilyn Minter, Jill Mulleady, Jeanette Mundt, Willa Nasatir, Jonny Negron, Lorraine O’Grady, Sarah Ortmeyer, Laura Owens, Pope.L, Giangiacomo Rossetti, Borna Sammak, John Sandroni, Dana Schutz, Katja Seib, Ser Serpas, Will Sheldon, Raphaela Simon, Josh Smith, Ryan Sullivan, Mickalene Thomas, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Betty Tompkins, Stewart Uoo, Charline von Heyl, Ambera Wellmann, and Jonas Wood.
Debuting a special performance at the opening on September 9, conceived for the show, Arakawa will further activate the space and reinforce the productive tensions between painting and performance. Brätsch will show a marbled painting from Unstable Talismanic Renderings , a body of work informed by her interest in the occult and, more broadly, the ideas of chance and the unknown, while Eisenman will present one of their richly expressive canvases that assert the darkly humorous moments of contemporary life. Owens will show a work that harnesses her experimental approach to painting and its material and conceptual limits. To round out the exhibition’s singular installation, the four organizers have collaborated on-site to paint seven oversize curtains partitioning the space, along with a large-scale mural adorning the back wall of a recessed space, typically left unexposed to gallery visitors. Additional painterly gestures and motifs made by the four artists playfully intersperse the gallery walls.
Katherine Bernhardt, Dana Schutz, Josh Smith, and Rirkrit Tiravanija, all artists represented by David Zwirner, will also make contributions that speak to the gallery’s diverse program. Emerging artists synthesize the old, new, and unexpected in their respective practices: Theresa Chromati derives inspiration from her graphic design background, here showing a large-scale, multipart painting that pulses with bold lines and brilliant color. John Sandroni employs fantastical motifs and makes use of varying techniques that produce otherworldly scenes. In his self-portrait, Will Sheldon airbrushes his likeness in detailed grayscale. A major site-specific installation by Pope.L will make its debut within the exhibition space. Other highlights by Judith Bernstein, Cecily Brown, Wade Guyton, and Charline von Heyl reflect the medium’s expansive nature in our contemporary moment.
About Performance Space New York
Over the last four decades Performance Space New York (formerly Performance Space 122) has been propelling cultural, theoretical, and political discourse forward. Founded in 1980, Performance Space became a haven for many queer and radical voices shut out by a repressive, monocultural mainstream and conservative government whose neglect exacerbated the emergent devastation of AIDS. Carrying forward the multitudinous visions of these artists, who wielded the political momentum of self-expression amidst the intensifying American culture wars, Performance Space is one of the birthplaces of contemporary performance as it is known today. Together with their artists and communities, the organization has been presenting interdisciplinary works that dissolve the borders of performance art, dance, theater, music, visual art, poetry and prose, ritual, nightlife, food, film, and technology. Performance Space is committed to centering those who have been historically excluded from spaces like theirs.