Following their acclaimed major survey, What Happened, at Whitechapel Gallery last year, Nicole Eisenman debuts new works at Sadie Coles HQ, London.
On one wall, Eisenman shows a recent ensemble of mismatched portraits depicting friends and fellow artists. This harnessing of community began in the early 2000s when they hosted late-night studio sessions inviting friends to model for one another, with Eisenman’s recognition that the intimacy of this social environment could become a rich subject for their practice. Displayed in a grid, each rag-tag character in this hall of infamy shares a connection with the artist – from Pope.L to Aunt Helen – yet this is the only commonality among them. Eisenman’s expressive and irregular application of oil paint results in portraits of diverse style, colour and texture, to produce an empathetic and affectionate assembly that recalls the initial encounter between artist and sitter.
In both their painting and sculpture practices, Eisenman makes astute comments on the human condition in a way that subtly self-deprecates – so not to scare, but to survive its solemn nature. Expressing their approach as ‘painting with one eye open’, in Fiddle V. Burns (2024) a new portrait has the artist working away as the world around them is in turmoil. With a paintbrush in one hand and the other poised on their hip, Eisenman’s protagonist exudes an expression of wilful ignorance, looking beyond the confines of their hollowed-out ‘studio’ bunker while contemplating the task at hand. With their typically balanced use of humour and anxiety, Eisenman’s painter mimics the caricature of the master at work, here isolated in a muddy shelter beneath the threat of imposing military machinery.
But Eisenman is not alone: their resolute industry is observed by this gallery of witness, encouraged even by this wall of allies. Drawing attention to the exclusionary nature of art history’s canon, Eisenman puts their artist back into the studio, diligently and defiantly, teasingly denying a view of the canvas they are working on.
| Duration | 13 November 2024 - 20 December 2024 |
| Times | Tues - Sat 11am - 6pm |
| Cost | Free |
| Venue | Sadie Coles HQ (Bury Street) |
| Address | 8 Bury Street, London, SW1Y 6AB |
| Contact | 442074938611 / info@sadiecoles.com / www.sadiecoles.com/ |