As a lifelong New Yorker who’s weathered countless blizzards and heatwaves, I find solace in the tranquil and captivating world of Alex Katz at MoMA’s “Seasons” exhibition. His paintings, like snapshots from his iPhone, capture the essence of our city’s ever-changing landscapes. It’s as if he’s distilled the city’s spirit into these abstracted masterpieces.
In many cities, seasons are experienced differently, but few undergo such dramatic shifts as New York. Ranging from bitingly cold to balmy or even alarmingly hot, navigating the contrast between charming and catastrophic is a defining aspect of life in New York. This is something that Alex Katz, a cherished artist based in SoHo who has been capturing the people and landscapes of his neighborhood since the 1950s, can attest to.
At the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), located uptown, Katz is exhibiting four grand paintings depicting the progression of seasons. These works are part of a collection exceeding 100 pieces he’s created in his studio since 2022. Katz usually initiates his creations using photos taken on his iPhone, which serve as the foundation for his artistic interpretations. The intriguing images he captures later evolve into the large-scale paintings that span from wall to wall at MoMA.
The art pieces created by Katz seem more like vague, expressive strokes instead of recognizable images such as a deciduous tree or a lush landscape. As he stated, it’s about capturing the feeling of seeing, with no distinct boundaries to the depicted landscapes. His approach is quite intuitive, often completing each work in just one morning. He also mentioned, “Hold your breath and hope for the best.” The exhibition, titled Seasons, will be wrapping up its final weeks starting from early September 8th, as summer gives way to fall.
The Museum of Modern Art
11 W 53rd St,
New York, NY 10019
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2024-08-22 22:26