Charles Ray, “Sleeping Woman,” “Shoe Tie,” “Young Man,” solid stainless steel, 2012 (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
Matthew Marks
Tuesday – Saturday through January 12, free, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
522 West 22nd St. between Tenth & Eleventh Aves.
212-243-0200
www.matthewmarks.com
charles ray slideshow
Los Angeles-based artist Charles Ray latest show in Matthew Marks’s vast 22nd St. space consists of a trio of new sculptures that create a sense of welcoming community. Set apart from one another, they still manage to feel together; despite being made of shiny silver machined solid stainless steel, they bring a warmth to the gallery. Upon first entering the large room, visitors encounter the 1,400-pound “Shoe Tie,” a depiction of Ray himself bent over on the floor, naked, tying an imaginary shoe on his bare right foot. Moving counterclockwise, to the far south is “Young Man,” a 1,500-pound bearded man looking straight ahead, standing naked and unashamed. To the east rests “Sleeping Woman,” a 6,000-pound fully dressed female on a small bench, the top half of her body scrunched together, her legs sticking out with her sneakered feet touching the ground. Although it doesn’t appear to be the most comfortable position, she seems to be sleeping sweetly. The detail on all three works is impressive, from the hair on their head to the expressions on their faces to the tips of their toes. Ray, who will turn sixty this year, has been incorporating the human body in his work since the early 1980s, from large-scale, professionally dressed women to a quartet of naked, same-sized parents and children holding hands (“Family Romance”) to white-painted aluminum figures (“Aluminum Girl,” “The New Beetle”) to mysterious installations that include live humans (“Leak,” “Shelf”). His current show at Matthew Marks adds a fresh, glittering perspective to a body of work so intrinsically linked to the human body.