ARTISTS
Axell's Paradise: Last works (1971-1972) before she vanished
Broadway 1602 October 1 鈥� November 21, 2009 For those who are willing to go to a slightly out-of-the-way, risk-taking gallery, located at 1182
John Yau / The Brooklyn Rail
01 Nov, 2009
Broadway 1602
October 1 鈥� November 21, 2009
For those who are willing to go to a slightly out-of-the-way, risk-taking gallery, located at 1182 Broadway between 28th and 29th Street, now would be a good time to hightail it over there and discover the bright, bold, erotic paintings of the Belgian Pop artist Evelyne Axell (1935-1972). A contemporary and friend of the English Pop artist Pauline Boty (1938-1966) and the innovative Polish sculptor, Alina Szapocznikow (1926-1973), whose work has also been shown in this small, smart, exciting gallery, Axell鈥檚 paintings and drawings epitomize 鈥渙verlooked, neglected, and forgotten.鈥� In POP (2005), published for Phaidon鈥檚 Themes and Movements series and edited by Mark Francis (with a 鈥淪urvey鈥� by Hal Foster), Axell is never mentioned, although Allan D鈥橝rcangelo, Allen Jones, John Wesley, and Tom Wesselmann are discussed, as is Rosalyn Drexler. Axell belongs in this company, and, like Boty and Drexler, embodies a proto-feminist critique in her work.
This exhibition focuses on the very last works Axell made before she died in a car accident, and typifies what she became known for in France, where her biggest champion was the influential French critic Pierre Restany. Axell鈥檚 style is graphic and direct. Many of the last paintings are like stage sets. They consist of a figure鈥攐ften a naked female鈥攖hat is painted on a cut piece of plexiglass, sometimes on both sides. The prone or relaxed figure is mounted in front of a lush landscape done in a different palette on Formica; generally warm colors for the figure and cool colors for the landscape. She used enamel to achieve a sensual, flat surface and always painted the narrow frames that were especially made for each painting.
In 鈥淟鈥橦erbe folle鈥� (鈥淭he Mad Forest鈥�) (1972), the voluptuous, flame-like tropical foliage is largely done in two shades of blue, with a muted green sky above. The nude reclining woman is holding eyeglasses (Axell鈥檚 signature prop) and daydreaming. Axell uses red and orange-red to emphasize the figure鈥檚 heated body, a red dot for a nipple and red for her lips. As with the other paintings in this group, the landscape contains strong verticals (tropical foliage, waterfall, palm trees) while the figure is often nude and horizontal; the symbolism is cheeky and obvious but never ingratiating. Seen within the context of Modernism, beginning with Gauguin鈥檚 views of Tahiti and including Wesselmann鈥檚 Great American Nude series, Axell鈥檚 views challenge the paradigm of woman as territory to be colonized or a willing subject of male fantasy. She does so unapologetically and with great verve, making no excuses or justifications for her intense desires. Her figures are in complete control and uncontrollable 鈥� the painted frames underscore this latter aspect. These are erotic images of autonomy and self-determination, and yet you don鈥檛 feel as if the artist is preaching.
In another painting, 鈥淟鈥� Oiseau de Paradis (version bleue)鈥� 鈥�(The Bird of Paradise (blue version))鈥�, (1971), a naked woman is pulling her last piece of clothing over her head. Her breasts and arms are blue, while her lips are red and her pubic hair is orange. The remainder of the plexiglass cutout is left transparent. An orange hummingbird flutters nearby, ready to sip the nectar. The unpainted plexiglass underscores the viewer鈥檚 voyeurism, while the paint makes plain what some viewers would consider the only important parts: mouth, breasts and sex. Wesselman鈥檚 nudes look repressed and corny next to Axell鈥檚 work, and Mel Ramos鈥檚 women look downright trivial.
In her other paintings and works on paper, Axell painted cropped views of nude women, generally looking off-frame, that are titled after different countries. 鈥淟a Tch猫que鈥� (鈥淭he Czech鈥�) (1969) hangs in the gallery鈥檚 office, along with one of the two works on paper of Angela Davis. There was also a portrait of Yael Dayan (1969) that, along with the one of Davis, was part of an ongoing series on strong women. She painted women as unknowable countries and celebrations of independence, all inflected by an erotic imagination.
In the last few years, there have been gallery exhibitions of Szapocznikow and Drexler, as well as the recent New Museum exhibition of Dorothy Iannone. The exhibition Seductive Subversion: Women Pop Artists 1958-1968, which has been organized by Sid Sachs, will open in Philadelphia on January 22, 2010 at The Rosewald-Wolf Gallery of the University of the Arts. Works of Boty will be in that exhibition, which is long overdue and absolutely necessary. Long before Cindy Sherman, whom I once heard Peter Schjeldahl call a 鈥済enius,鈥� arrived on the scene, artists such as Axell, Boty, Drexler and Szapocznikow paved the way. That Axell was shameless about her erotic desires and celebrated them throughout her tragically brief career should not be forgotten. She was a groundbreaker, and, unlike Sherman, didn鈥檛 empty out her subject.
October 1 鈥� November 21, 2009
For those who are willing to go to a slightly out-of-the-way, risk-taking gallery, located at 1182 Broadway between 28th and 29th Street, now would be a good time to hightail it over there and discover the bright, bold, erotic paintings of the Belgian Pop artist Evelyne Axell (1935-1972). A contemporary and friend of the English Pop artist Pauline Boty (1938-1966) and the innovative Polish sculptor, Alina Szapocznikow (1926-1973), whose work has also been shown in this small, smart, exciting gallery, Axell鈥檚 paintings and drawings epitomize 鈥渙verlooked, neglected, and forgotten.鈥� In POP (2005), published for Phaidon鈥檚 Themes and Movements series and edited by Mark Francis (with a 鈥淪urvey鈥� by Hal Foster), Axell is never mentioned, although Allan D鈥橝rcangelo, Allen Jones, John Wesley, and Tom Wesselmann are discussed, as is Rosalyn Drexler. Axell belongs in this company, and, like Boty and Drexler, embodies a proto-feminist critique in her work.
This exhibition focuses on the very last works Axell made before she died in a car accident, and typifies what she became known for in France, where her biggest champion was the influential French critic Pierre Restany. Axell鈥檚 style is graphic and direct. Many of the last paintings are like stage sets. They consist of a figure鈥攐ften a naked female鈥攖hat is painted on a cut piece of plexiglass, sometimes on both sides. The prone or relaxed figure is mounted in front of a lush landscape done in a different palette on Formica; generally warm colors for the figure and cool colors for the landscape. She used enamel to achieve a sensual, flat surface and always painted the narrow frames that were especially made for each painting.
In 鈥淟鈥橦erbe folle鈥� (鈥淭he Mad Forest鈥�) (1972), the voluptuous, flame-like tropical foliage is largely done in two shades of blue, with a muted green sky above. The nude reclining woman is holding eyeglasses (Axell鈥檚 signature prop) and daydreaming. Axell uses red and orange-red to emphasize the figure鈥檚 heated body, a red dot for a nipple and red for her lips. As with the other paintings in this group, the landscape contains strong verticals (tropical foliage, waterfall, palm trees) while the figure is often nude and horizontal; the symbolism is cheeky and obvious but never ingratiating. Seen within the context of Modernism, beginning with Gauguin鈥檚 views of Tahiti and including Wesselmann鈥檚 Great American Nude series, Axell鈥檚 views challenge the paradigm of woman as territory to be colonized or a willing subject of male fantasy. She does so unapologetically and with great verve, making no excuses or justifications for her intense desires. Her figures are in complete control and uncontrollable 鈥� the painted frames underscore this latter aspect. These are erotic images of autonomy and self-determination, and yet you don鈥檛 feel as if the artist is preaching.
In another painting, 鈥淟鈥� Oiseau de Paradis (version bleue)鈥� 鈥�(The Bird of Paradise (blue version))鈥�, (1971), a naked woman is pulling her last piece of clothing over her head. Her breasts and arms are blue, while her lips are red and her pubic hair is orange. The remainder of the plexiglass cutout is left transparent. An orange hummingbird flutters nearby, ready to sip the nectar. The unpainted plexiglass underscores the viewer鈥檚 voyeurism, while the paint makes plain what some viewers would consider the only important parts: mouth, breasts and sex. Wesselman鈥檚 nudes look repressed and corny next to Axell鈥檚 work, and Mel Ramos鈥檚 women look downright trivial.
In her other paintings and works on paper, Axell painted cropped views of nude women, generally looking off-frame, that are titled after different countries. 鈥淟a Tch猫que鈥� (鈥淭he Czech鈥�) (1969) hangs in the gallery鈥檚 office, along with one of the two works on paper of Angela Davis. There was also a portrait of Yael Dayan (1969) that, along with the one of Davis, was part of an ongoing series on strong women. She painted women as unknowable countries and celebrations of independence, all inflected by an erotic imagination.
In the last few years, there have been gallery exhibitions of Szapocznikow and Drexler, as well as the recent New Museum exhibition of Dorothy Iannone. The exhibition Seductive Subversion: Women Pop Artists 1958-1968, which has been organized by Sid Sachs, will open in Philadelphia on January 22, 2010 at The Rosewald-Wolf Gallery of the University of the Arts. Works of Boty will be in that exhibition, which is long overdue and absolutely necessary. Long before Cindy Sherman, whom I once heard Peter Schjeldahl call a 鈥済enius,鈥� arrived on the scene, artists such as Axell, Boty, Drexler and Szapocznikow paved the way. That Axell was shameless about her erotic desires and celebrated them throughout her tragically brief career should not be forgotten. She was a groundbreaker, and, unlike Sherman, didn鈥檛 empty out her subject.