\n\t\t<\/aside>\nAs we close out another year, December hails as the month of holy celebrations, reflection, and acts of gifting. Frankly speaking, this year calls to mind the maudlin tone of Elvis Presley\u2019s famed ballad \u201cBlue Christmas\u201d (1957) as we aspire to rejoice amid the approaching reality of the January inauguration and a bitter winter. Nevertheless, \u201cart as saving sorceress,\u201d as the mighty Friedrich Nietzsche puts it, swoops in with the potential to bolster our spirits and entertain our souls. In Upstate New York, a round of shows offers happy holiday sentiments all month long. Paintings by Melanie Luna at Gallery 495 in Catskill conjure ethereal realms, while Chie Fueki <\/em>at Kino Saito in Verplanck presents colorful mixed-media works. <\/em>William Abranowicz and David Graham present alluring photos at Hawk + Hive, and Kimber and Sam Truitt collaborate on text-based works at Green Kill in Kingston. Caroline Burdett takes us on a walk-about through mystical lands at Pinkwater Gallery in Kingston, while Stephen Towns depicts Black Americans in moments of shared repose and revelry at the Rockwell Museum in Corning. May we take a clue from Elvis, and indulge in saccharine joy despite bluesy realities. Let great art be the wonderous gift of this December season!\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Melanie Luna: As Above, So Below<\/h2>\n Gallery 495<\/strong>, 495 Main Street, Catskill, New York\n
\n\t\t\t\tMelanie Luna, \u201cTank\u201d (2024), alcohol ink and oil on canvas, 133 x 78 inches (~337.8 x 198.1 cm) (photo by Otto Ohle; courtesy the artist and Gallery 495)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nFeaturing a series of recent works by Dominican Republic-born Melanie Luna, As Above, So Below <\/em>at Gallery 495 in Catskill reflects the intensity of an unbalanced world through poignant visions, each a stand-alone chronicle of our times. Taking inspiration from nature and the theoretical writings of Carl Jung, Luna explores the human and the cosmic, setting the stage for us to fill in the blanks with our own experiences. \u201cAndromeda\u2019s Epic\u201d (2024), for example, features a naked nymph-like woman at the edge of raging water. She raises herself upward while a shadow puppet mirroring her posture hangs from her fingertips in a dreamlike scene that suggests the fantasy of escape. In \u201cTank\u201d (2024), a crimson and ochre-toned tank is ready for action, a chilling reminder of forces of subjugation. \u201cPale Blue Dot\u201d (2023), which features a sandy, cratered landscape that could be either a far-flung moon or a beach at midnight illuminated by a camera flash, reinforces the curiously disorienting nature of this show. Jung was a pioneer of analytic psychology, and Luna\u2019s work is equally compelling in its journey through conscious and unconscious realms.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/aside>\n\n
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Chie Fueki: Petal Storm Memory<\/h2>\n Kino Saito<\/strong>, 115 7th Street, Verplanck, New York\n
\n\t\t\t\tChie Fueki, \u201cSunrise Sunset\u201d (2023), acrylic and colored pencil on mulberry paper on wood, 60 x 48 inches (152.4 x 121.9 cm) (photo by Chika Kobari, image courtesy the artist and Kino Saito)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nChie Fueki takes us into a sacred realm of her unique design, where disembodied eyes full of longing peek at us from abstract lands laced with familiar objects made supernatural. In \u201cArtemis\u201d (2022), for instance, a shelf of plants and isolated flowers gives way to a star-strewn ocean above which more sets of eyes peer forth. In \u201cSunrise Sunset\u201d (2023), a spread of cozy houseplants in the foreground sets a perfect stage for the surrealist scene in the background, where enormous eyes in a mountain gaze at us as a red sun blazes forth. \u201cPainting\u201d (2023) is one of my favorites: It features an androgynous-looking cool kid sporting Nike sneakers and a backpack with long hair flowing and paintbrush in hand. In addition to her paintings, a series of mixed media works on paper provide a colorful footnote, including \u201cYozakura (Minamiota)\u201d (2023), a symphony in blue, and \u201cYozakura (Gumyoji)\u201d (2023), which beams with pink tones.<\/p>\n
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Jesse Aran Greenberg: Counterpart<\/h2>\n Turley Gallery<\/strong>, 609 Warren Street, 2nd floor, Hudson, New York\n
\n\t\t\t\tJesse Greenberg, \u201cClimax 5\u201d (2024), oil pastel on wood board in frame 24 x 18 x 1\/8 inches (~61 x 48.3 x .3 cm) (photo courtesy of artist and Turley)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nJesse Aran Greenberg explores and explodes form through a series of colorfully chaotic drawings and eccentric sculptures in his solo show Counterpart <\/em>at Turley Gallery in Hudson. On the one hand, his drawings are environments teeming with musical motion and play; on the other, his sculptural objects are motionless (though still playful). First, the oil pastel drawings: His \u201cClimax 3\u201d (all 2024) bursts forth from a nebulous black shape at the upper right side of the work, setting the stage for \u201cClimax 4,\u201d a jumble of colorful shapes dominated by a blue patch at the center, which eventually gives way to \u201cClimax 5,\u201d where a splash of sprawling forms in the upper left topples to the lower right of the drawing. Then, the sculpture: His pale lime green \u201cColumn Survey,\u201d\u00a0 made of urethane plastic and looking something like a cross between a municipal helmet and a kitchen appliance, made me giggle at first sight.<\/p>\n\n
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William Abranowicz & David Graham: Fictions from the Real World<\/h2>\n Hawk + Hive<\/strong>, 61 Main Street, Andes, New York\n
\n\t\t\t\tDavid Graham, \u201cClifton\u2019s Cafe, Los Angeles, CA\u201d (2016), edition 1\/1, archival print, 17 x 23 1\/2 inches (~43.2 x 59.7 cm) (image courtesy the artist and Hawk + Hive)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nTwo seasoned photographers come together with a series of atmospheric artworks in Fictions from the Real World <\/em>at Hawk + Hive in Andes. William Abranowicz and David Graham take turns in ambiguous documentary-style photographs that suggest the opening lines of either a poetic narrative or a murder mystery. In Graham\u2019s \u201cClifton\u2019s Cafe, Los Angeles, CA\u201d (2016), for instance, we are transported into a restaurant scene full of folks eating, but the protagonist is a lone man who sits to the left of the scene, sipping coffee with a smudged cross across his wrinkled forehead, most likely from an Ash Wednesday visit to church. His slightly eerie \u201cPrivate Plane, Teterboro Airport\u201d (2014) features a woman\u2019s foot in a black flat as she sits cross-legged in a leather-heavy section of a posh airplane, offering a peek into someone\u2019s VIP life from afar, as well as a glance into his professional life as a location scout. Abranowicz\u2019s meticulous photos also reflect his life adventures in real-time \u2014 works such as \u201cLouis XV, Hotel de Paris, Monte Carlo\u201d (1995) and \u201cDining Room Station, Czech Republic\u201d (1994) illustrate his globe-trotting as a 25-year contributing photographer to Cond\u00e9 Nast Traveler <\/em>magazine.<\/p>\n\n
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Kimber Truitt and Sam Truitt: Dicte: A Triptych & 26 Salvages<\/h2>\n Green Kill<\/strong>, 229 Greenkill Avenue, Kingston, New York\n
\n\t\t\t\tSam Truitt, \u201cWater (Shatshfatee 1, white)\u201d (2024), Rag Photographique paper, T&T art\/works-embossed, limited edition of 20 fine-art prints, signed and numbered (01\/20) by the artist (image courtesy the artist and Green Kill)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nAfter a year-long daily practice of interacting with 144-word blocks of text, artists and husband-wife team Kimber and Sam Truitt (working collaboratively as T&T art\/works) present Dicte: A Triptych <\/em>and 26 Salvages <\/em>at Green Kill in Kingston. Truitt and Truitt transposed texts \u2014 which include Morse code, stage directions, and prose \u2014 to various mediums such as sounds, music, recordings, symbols, photos, movies, and others via their own interpretations. Kimber Truitt\u2019s abstract mixed-media collage paintings \u201cThe State (Salvages 11)\u201d (2018) and \u201cEmpire (Salvages 15)\u201d (2019) embody the hands-on messiness of art-making as one aspect of this show, while Sam Truitt\u2019s three-screen, audio-visual work \u201cDicte\u201d (2012\u201313) and text-heavy works on paper with slightly illegible titles such as \u201cWater (Shatshfatee 1, white)\u201d (2024) and \u201cStick Stick (Shatshfatee)\u201d (2024) utilize language as a metaphor for the deluge of information in today\u2019s digital world. <\/p>\n\n
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By Moonlight: The Magical Landscapes of Caroline Burdett<\/h2>\n Pinkwater Gallery<\/strong>, 237 Front Street, Kingston, New York\n
\n\t\t\t\tCaroline Burdett, \u201cTHE CAVE\u201d (2024), acrylic, wax pastel on canvas, 36 x 60 inches (~91.4 x 152.4 cm), unframed (photo by Yellowhouse Production; courtesy Pinkwater Gallery)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nThe title of this show embodies its dreamy ambiance: By Moonlight: The Magical Landscapes of Caroline Burdett <\/em>at Pinkwater Gallery in Kingston offers a warm and welcoming path of escape through painting. Working in rich tones reminiscent of the Fauvists, Burdett orchestrates a vibrant vista in each of her works, often transforming natural locales into quasi-abstract environments that border on surrealist. \u201cThe Cave\u201d (all works 2024), for instance, features milky waterfalls that land at different points within a deep green and purple landscape as a hazy sun (or moon) fades away from a pink horizon line, leaving a sumptuous glow. Perhaps it is that same sun-moon and mystical flow of water that passes through \u201cThe First Time\u201d and finally arrives as a pinkish patch of shadow in the background of \u201cCalifornia.\u201d Burdett keeps us searching, inviting us to swim further into the liquid energy of works such as \u201cHush,\u201d where the distant moon commands the sky with its graceful gleam as a teeny turquoise coyote looks out onto a lost yet lovely world.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Erica Hauser: No Ordinary Blue<\/h2>\n Robin Rice Gallery<\/strong>, 234 Warren Street, Hudson, New York\n
\n\t\t\t\tErica Hauser, \u201cContemplation Blue\u201d (2023), acrylic on canvas, 36 x 48 inches (~91.4 x 121.9 cm) (image courtesy the artist and Robin Rice Gallery)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nTaking inspiration from artists such as Ellsworth Kelly and designers such as Sonia Delaunay and bolstered by her experience as a seasonal wood stacker for her father\u2019s firewood business, Erica Hauser\u2019s paintings are an exquisite exercise in pattern and placement. No Ordinary Blue <\/em>at Robin Rice Gallery in Hudson presents a series of recent hard-edged works that extol the moodiness of blue. Employing universal shapes as her main characters and referencing song lyrics for titles, Hauser teases out a dramatic storyline. In \u201cRivertown Blue II\u201d (all works 2024), several plump circles in shades of white, gray, and blue stack up one on top of the other against a cobalt backdrop. \u201cNo Ordinary Blue II\u201d features two white forms that gracefully connect while a rich Yves Klein-inspired blue surrounds their moment of meeting. Her vibrant \u201cJukebox Blues\u201d features a symphony of forms that vibrate with excitement, as if boogying to a beat that lifts us along as it goes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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Stephen Towns\u2019 Private Paradise: A Figurative Exploration of Black Rest and Recreation<\/h2>\n The Rockwell Museum<\/strong>, 111 Cedar Street, Corning, New YorkStephen Towns, \u201cI Will Follow You My Dear\u201d (2024), natural and synthetic fabric, polyester and cotton thread, acrylic and crystal glass beads, shells, 55 x 72 inches (139.7 x 182.9 cm) (image courtesy the artist)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nInspired by photographs of Paradise Park \u2014 a segregated park in Silver Springs, Florida that operated from 1949 to 1969 \u2014 by the late underwater photographer (Robert) Bruce Mozert, Stephen Towns\u2019 Private Paradise: A Figurative Exploration of Black Rest and Recreation <\/em>at the Rockwell Museum in Corning is a celebration of the individuals \u201cwho made the park a magical place to visit,\u201d as the artist put it in a promotional video for the show. Exploring the complexities of Black American history through paintings, fabric collaged works, and quilting, Towns brings to life the stories of people who found refuge and revelry at Paradise Park. Using reflective materials and bright fabrics, quilted works such as \u201cLooking for Lorraine\u201d (2024) and \u201cI Will Follow You My Dear\u201d (2024) feature faceless women in patterned bathing suits relaxing on the beach reading magazines and swimming underwater among fish and fauna, respectively. The painting \u201cTaking Flight\u201d (2022) features three serious-looking boys with kites next to a sublimely turquoise body of water, while \u201cWhen We Were Young\u201d (2022) includes a pack of smiling children in swimming gear, each one beaming with the prospect of a day of carefree fun. Towns comments that the glittery, radiant material used in his artworks represents his \u201cnew idea of God and energy\u201d with the hope that others feel this natural warmth and are inspired to look further into the history of Black communities in America.\u00a0<\/p>\n