Sikkema Jenkins & Co. in Chelsea is presenting several new drawings and paintings by Jorge Queiroz for his second solo show at the gallery. These paintings are created with oil stick, charcoal, gouche, Japanese ink, and oil paint. Queiroz’s works are a stimulating feast for the eye and imagination with multi-colored, abstract and distorted figures and shapes.
He delves into the complex relationships that exist between fantasy and the natural world. “The perception of one work affects the reception of the next one. Something perceived as an abstract structure or a fictional scene is altered by a flow of mental images, one melting into the other, from one work to the next,” the artist explains.
One painting of note is October Enthusiasm that features the body of a hippo in the center, and within its body appear to be shapes of other animals such as a white bull and a chicken. H for Heads is a mesmerizing puzzle of shapes and figures, including many human and animals heads as the title suggests, and a small silhouette seen near the top left corner of the piece.
Other intriguing images include Father and Son, Labyrinth, The Intruder, and H for Heads, The Astronaut and the Mummy. Queiroz has cited major painters such as Paul Gauguin, Roberto Matta, Francisco Goya, and Albert Pinkham Rider to be some of his greatest inspirations.
Queiroz was born and raised in Lisbon, Portugal where he studied at the Centro de Arte e Comunicação Visual before coming to New York to earn his master’s degree at the School of Visual Arts. Queiroz’s work has been shown in many countries throughout Europe, and his work was also presented at the 26th São Paulo Biennial (2004) and 50th Venice Biennale (2003).
At Sikkema & Jenkins Co., 530 W. 22nd St., through March 2nd. The gallery is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
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