Idyllic paintings of daily life set centuries ago are spliced with a dystopian sci-fi fantasy in German artist Jakub Rozalski’s work. Nostalgic elements clash with futuristic ones as giant robots invade the European countryside. Soldiers, armed with rifles and on horseback, are powerless against the mechanical beasts. Unlike much sci-fi inspired work, Rozalski’s paintings have a painterly quality to them that evokes the loose expressiveness of Impressionism. He convincingly inserts the robots into scenes that would otherwise appear straight out of the late 19th or early 20th century, inviting viewers to imagine a starkly different version of history than the one we know today.
Alvin Ong's oil paintings, depicting decadence and nondiscriminatory consumption, crackle with energy. These works, following a tradition in art history of examining these themes, move between eroticism and aggression. The Singaporean artist offered this most recent body of work as "Supper Club" earlier this year.
With "Burn With Me" at Arch Enemy Arts, Michael Reedy offers new mixed-media works that examine themes of birth and death. Kicking off on Sept. 6, the show follows the artist's 2016 show at the Philadelphia gallery, "Dust & Moonshine." The title "Burn With Me" is inspired by a Banana Yoshimoto short story with the line, ”I bet I go to hell when I die ... ” Reedy was last mentioned on our site 