Nathaniel Mary Quinn Explores Multifaceted Identities in Aspen Exhibition

After presenting a selection of fragmented portraits at Gagosian earlier this year, Nathaniel Mary Quinn returns with a new body of work as part of one of the inaugural shows at Almine Rech’s new Aspen location. Entitled “In The Valley,” the New York-based artist presents a series of paintings that continue to explore the human identity while touching on real-life experiences.

For each work, there are a myriad of visual elements to illustrate the complexity and uniqueness of every human’s lived experiences beyond their appearances through a single portrait. These kaleidoscopic subjects are composed of varying source materials such as websites, magazines and even personal family photo albums. With each piece, Almine Rech expressed in a statement that the artist leaves onlookers questioning: “So, is a painting by Quinn a synthetic patchwork made of discrete singular moments? Or, is it an organic fresco made of the same plural moment?”

The works are beyond the compositions that they convey. Instead they spark concurrent investigations in material as well as the obscurity of their respective features. “It is hindered by the restrictive equation of collage with papier collé, as explored by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. It is thus solely founded on the apparent fragmentation of the figure into a myriad of strictly heterogeneous and external elements. But when facing a painting by Quinn, we behold a nascent, complex, and diverse homogeneity.”

Check out installation views for “In The Valley” in the slideshow above and then head to Almine Rech’s website for more information.

Elsewhere in art, Jean-Michel Basquiat’s family will present an unseen collection of his art in an upcoming exhibition.

Almine Rech
601 E Hyman Ave
Aspen, CO 81611