Brainard Carey's Blog, page 7

Jessica Helfand

Photo: by Philip Bennett

Jessica Helfand (b. 1960) is an artist and writer.

She grew up in Paris and New York City, and received her BA and MFA from Yale University where she taught for more than two decades. She is the author of numerous books on visual and cultural criticism, and was the first-ever recipient, in 2010, of the Henry Wolf Residency at the American Academy in Rome.

A 2018 Director’s Guest at Civitella Ranieri and a 2019 fellow at the Bogliasco Foundation, Jessica Helfand was also the 2020 Artist in Residence at Caltech. She lives and works in New England.

A view of some of the paintings which will be on view from May 1 to June 1 at Jim Kempner Fine Art in New York. (Photo courtesy of the artist.)Agnes Grey, Anne Brönte, 1847, Mixed media and oil on canvas, 20 x 16 inches, 2024
The cold wind had swelled and reddened my hands, uncurled and entangled my hair, and dyed my face of a pale purple; add to this my collar was horridly crumpled, my frock splashed with mud, my feet clad in stout new boots, and as the trunks were not brought up, there was no remedy … so having smoothed my hair as well as I could, and repeatedly twitched my obdurate collar, I proceeded to clomp down two flights of stairs, philosophizing as I went.Claudine, Claudine in Paris, Colette, 1901, Mixed media and oil on canvas, 52 x 42 inches, 2025.                  Pointed chin, you’re attractive but don’t, I implore you, overdo that point. Hazel eyes, you persist in being hazel and I can’t blame you for it; but don’t retreat under my eyebrows with that excessive modesty. Mouth, you’re still my mouth, but so pale that I can’t resist rubbing those short, colorless lips with petals pulled from the red geranium in the window. (Incidentally it only gives them a horrid, purplish tinge that I promptly lick off.) As to you, my poor little white, anaemic ears, I hide you under my curly hair and secretly look at you from time to time and pinch you to make you redden. But it’s my hair that’s the worst of all. I can’t touch it without wanting to cry … they’ve cut them all off, just below the ear—my auburn ringlets, my lovely, smoothly-rolled ringlets! 

Alan Bray

Alan Bray was born in Waterville, Maine, and grew up in Monson, a small slate-quarrying town set in the northern reaches of the Appalachians. Bray attended the Art Institute of Boston before graduating from the University of Southern Maine; he received his MFA in painting from the Villa Schifanoia in Florence, Italy. It was during this formative time in Florence that he was exposed to casein tempera on panel.

Bray’s work has been the subject of no less than 25 solo exhibitions and is included in the public collections of the Portland Museum of Art, ME; DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, MA; the Farnsworth Museum of Art, ME; Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, NY; Zillman Art Museum, ME; Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, WI; Lyman Allyn Museum of Arts, New London, CT;  Maine Savings Bank Collection, Memphis Cancer Center, Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts, Menlo Park, CA; among others. The artist lives and works in Sangerville, Maine.

As both a naturalist and a painter, Bray is drawn to what often goes unnoticed. “I paint what is right around me,” he says. “Occasionally it’s a big subject, but more often it’s a bird’s nest or a farm pond.” Like the subtle geometry of his compositions, Bray’s preference for modest, unassuming subjects—backwater meanders over mountaintop vistas—is deliberate and quietly profound. He has become an expert observer of bogs and shorelines, rock slides and fallow fields, daybreaks and dusks, the shifting edges of seasons. In the overlooked landscapes of his native Maine, Bray uncovers a deep sense of spirituality that gives his work its quiet power—transformative in its presence, not merely descriptive.

Bray paints in casein, a milk-based tempera that has virtually no drying time. Necessarily, his paintings are technically complex because they consist of thousands of tiny brush strokes, built up in layers, out of which the images – the vision – advance from the foundation of a mirror-smooth, absolute void of white ground. It is a method of painting that follows directly from his method of exploring his subjects.

Alan Bray, Neighbors, 2025 Casein on panel, 11 x 14 in.Alan Bray A Whisper Breaks the Silence, 2024 Casein on panel, 15 x 20 in.Alan Bray Refuge, 2024 Casein on panel, 16 x 20 in

Zuriel Waters

Zuriel Waters was born in 1984 in Philadelphia, PA, and lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. Received an MFA in Painting from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2010 and a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies from San Diego State University in 2007.

Has shown work in group exhibitions throughout New York City at galleries such as Underdonk, Marvin Gardens, Tappeto Volante, CANADA and others and has recently had solo shows at Left Field Gallery in Los Osos, CA, My Pet Ram in NYC and Kathryn Markel Fine Arts in NYC.

Tongue Drum, 2025 acrylic pigment-dyed burlap, canvas and twill, upholstery thread, felt, eye-hooks 28 x 42 in.Elle, 2024 acrylic on denim, thread, industrial felt, cotton duck, hardware 35 1/2 x 21 in.am/pm, 2025 acrylic pigment-dyed burlap, canvas and twill, upholstery thread, felt, eye-hooks 43 x 28 in.

Laurie Sheck

Laurie Sheck’s novel A Monster’s Notes, a reimagining of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein,  was long listed for the Dublin Impac International Fiction Prize. Her book of poems, The Willow Grove, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.

Her work has appeared widely in the Paris Review, the New Yorker and elsewhere. She has been a Guggenheim Fellow, a fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard, and at the Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at the New York Public Library. A member of the MFA Creative Writing faculty at the New School, she lives in New York City.

This interview focuses on her new book, Cyborg Fever.

Hope Gangloff

Portrait of artist in studio, 2016 Photo: Don Stahl Courtesy of Susan Inglett Gallery, NYC.

Hope Gangloff (b. 1974)attended The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science andArt. She is well known for her vibrant portrait and landscape paintings that combine a distinctive bright palette with intricate line work. Her early portraiture garnered attention for its intimate observation of relatable moments, from a road trip with friends to a late-night houseparty. Gangloff’s work was recently exhibited in “Forces of Nature: Voices That Shaped Environmentalism” at the National Portrait Gallery, Washington D.C. and in “Women PaintingWomen” at the Fort Worth Modern, with an upcoming solo exhibition at Susan Inglett Gallery,NYC, from 1 May–7 June 2025.

Solo exhibitions include the Cantor Arts Center, StanfordUniversity; the Broad Art Museum, East Lansing; and Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield. Her work can be found in the permanent collections of the Grinnell CollegeMuseum of Art, Grinnell; National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C.; the Broad Art Museum,East Lansing; the Kemper Museum, Kansas City; and Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts,Philadelphia, among others.

Hope Gangloff, James (Case-Leal), 2025 (Detail) Acrylic on linen 36 x 26 in. Copyright The Artist Courtesy of Susan Inglett Gallery, NYC.Hope Gangloff, ‘Bittersweet’ barn, 2025 (Detail) Acrylic on canvas 48 x 72 in. Copyright The Artist Courtesy of Susan Inglett Gallery, NYC.Hope Gangloff, Matthew (Holtzclaw) & Prakash (Puru), 2025 (Detail) Acrylic on wood panel 80 1/2 x 48 in. Copyright The Artist Courtesy of Susan Inglett Gallery, NYC.

Marek Wolfryd

Marek Wolfryd (b.1989, Mexico City) lives and works in Mexico City. He is a multidisciplinary artist that explores the intersection of artistic and economic narratives in the context of culture, history, and society. Through a wide range of media, such as process art, readymades, sculpture, installations, video, and performance, Wolfryd reviews cultural movements and their aesthetic discourses, generally delving into micro-historical phenomena surrounding these great chronicles. Through long-term research projects, Wolfryd builds a conceptual framework that exposes the complexity of certain narratives that exist both within and outside the spheres of symbolic influence of the Western world. His works reflect and explore the means of mass production, consumer culture, copyright, authorship, and the mechanisms of art creation and distribution.

His work has been shown in Aparador LA, Los Angeles, General Expenses, Mexico City, Tiro al Blanco, Guadalajara, Mexico, Chalton Gallery, London, United Kingdom, Aoyama Meguro, Tokyo, Japan, Museo de la Ciudad de Querétaro, Querétaro, Mexico, Ekkisens Art Space, Reykjavik, Iceland among others. Wolfryd holds a BA from ENPEG “La Esmeralda” and has studied at SOMA.

Marek Wolfryd, “The Great Logic of Contents that Bind the World into Existence or “Season’s Greetings!””Marek Wolfryd, Koon’s Blue Balls, 2024 Blown Sphere, Polyurethane Foam, Screws and Resin 12 H x 24 W x 12 D in. 30 H x 61 W x 30 D cm.Marek Wolfryd, Jasper Jaar or the Influx of Consuming What we Ideologically Perceive as American From Both Sides of the Ecuador, 2024 Oil on Canvas 51 H x 78 W in. 130 H x 198 W cm.

Riley Holloway

Riley Holloway

Riley Holloway studied Graphic Design at The Art Institute of Dallas, during which time he completed a Portrait Workshop at The Florence Academy of Art in Italy. Following his studies, Holloway was awarded a 3-month artist residency at The Fairmont Hotel in Dallas, which culminated in his first solo exhibition in the hotel’s gallery. The artist is a Hunting Prize finalist.

Holloway has exhibited internationally, with recent notable solo exhibitions including those at backs/ash in Paris, Erin Cluley Gallery in Dallas, Bloom Galerie in Geneva, Bode Projects at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair, The African American Museum of Dallas, and First Amendment Gallery in San Francisco. Love Galore at Massey Klein Gallery is the artist’s first solo exhibition in New York City.

In 2023, Holloway’s Records on Repeat was one of twelve works selected for acquisition by The Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) through the Dallas Art Fair Foundation. The artist’s work is held in other prominent collections including The University of Oregon, Stanford University, The Dean Collection, and The Fairmont Dallas. The artist lives and works in Dallas, TX.

Riley Holloway, Love Galore, 2024 Oil and oil pastel on canvas 48 x 48 x 1.25 inchesRiley Holloway, Flowers for You, 2024 Oil and oil pastel on canvas 27.5 x 41.5 x 1.25 inchesRiley Holloway Love on Display, I, II, III, 2024 Oil and oil pastel on canvas 10 x 20 x 1.5 each

Violeta Maya

Violeta Maya (b. 1993, Madrid, Spain) lives and works in Madrid and received her BA from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 2015. Recent solo exhibitions include Me atrevo a decir que esta pintura está viva, Nicelle Beauchene Gallery, New York (2025), Precisamente porque el rosa me incomoda, Alzueta Gallery, Barcelona, ES (2023), Todo en constante cambio y yo aquí observando, Nicelle Beauchene Gallery, New York (2023), ¿Verde Azulado o Azul Verdoso?, Alzueta Gallery, Palau de Casavells, Girona, ES (2022), and A mi nadie me preguntó si quería nacer, pero bueno, aquí estoy, Alzueta Gallery, Madrid, ES (2022).

She was recently featured as part of the Olivia Foundation’s Spotlight Series and has been included in group exhibitions at Jack Siebert Projects, Los Angeles (2025), Fernberger Gallery, Los Angeles (2024), Alzueta Gallery, Madrid, ES (2023); and GÄRNA Gallery, Madrid, ES (2022), among others.

Violeta Maya, Me atrevería a decir que esta pintura está viva, 2024, Pigments and acrylic on canvas, 80 1/4h x 119 3/4w in.Violeta Maya, Miedo a lo desconocido, 2024, Wood, acrylic on silk, 81 1/4h x 20w x 4 3/4d in.Violeta Maya, Infinitas versiones de una misma I, 2024, Pigments and acrylic on canvas, 78 1/2h x 48 3/4w in.

Diane Burko

Diane Burko’s work in painting, photography, and time-based media considers the marks that human conversations make on the landscape. A Professor Emerita of the Community College of Philadelphia with additional teaching experience at Princeton University, Burko has received multiple grants from the NEA, the Pennsylvania Arts Council, the Leeway Foundation and the Independence Foundation. She has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Women’s Caucus for Art.

After focusing for several decades on monumental geological formations and waterways through landscape painting, Burko has shifted in the past 20 years to analyze the impact of industrial and colonial activity on those same landscapes. Burko’s practice seeks to visually emulsify interconnected subjects– extraction, deforestation, extinction, environmental justice, indigenous genocide, ecological degradation, climate collapse– so viewers might feel their connection viscerally through the beauty of her work. While her work deals with impending climate catastrophe, rather than lingering in dystopia, it celebrates the sublimity of the landscape by honoring the intricate geological and political webs that shape the identity of a place.

Burko has exhibited extensively nationally and internationally, including shows at London’s Royal Academy of Art, Minneapolis Art Institute, National Academy of Sciences, Phillips Collection, RISD Museum Tang Museum, Wesleyan University Center for the Arts, and the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid. She has been awarded residencies in Giverny, Bellagio, the Arctic Circle, and the Amazon Rainforest. In 2021, her solo exhibition Seeing Climate Change at the American University Museum was cited in the New York Times as one of the best shows of 2021. Her most recent solo show, Diane Burko: Bearing Witness, open January 31 to March 8, 2025 at Cristin Tierney Gallery was her first solo exhibition in New York in over 40 years.

Throughout her practice, Burko especially cherishes her collaborations with researchers in the sciences. She learns the most from “bearing witness” to the land.

Diane Burko Summer Heat 1 & 2 2020 Mixed Media on Canvas, 84 x 162 in. overall. Courtesy of the artist and Cristin Tierney Gallery. Photo by Adam Reich.Diane Burko Amazon 34 2024 Mixed Media on Canvas, 20 x 20 in. Courtesy of the artist and Cristin Tierney Gallery. Photo by Adam Reich.Diane Burko Unprecedented Study 1 2021 Mixed Media on Canvas, 20 x 20 in. Courtesy of the artist and Cristin Tierney Gallery. Photo by Adam Reich.

Aaron Gilbert

Photography by Balarama Heller

Aaron Gilbert (b. 1979, Altoona, PA) lives and works between New York and Los Angeles. Gilbert received a BFA in painting from Yale University in 2005 followed by a MFA in painting from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in 2008. Gilbert also holds an Associate of Science in Mechanical Engineering Technology from Penn State University (2000).

Gilbert’s work has been exhibited with Sant’Andrea de Scaphis, Rome; PPOW Gallery, New York; Chris Sharp Gallery, Los Angeles; Lyles & King, New York; and Deitch Projects, New York. Gilbert’s work is in major public collections including the Whitney Museum of American Art, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Hammer Museum, Studio Museum in Harlem, Columbus Museum of Art, High Museum, and RISD Museum. Aaron Gilbert has also been the recipient of many awards including the Colene Brown Art Prize in 2022, Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Grant in 2015, and was named the 2010 “Young American Painter of Distinction” by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Gilbert has held residencies at Fountainhead Residency (2013), Yaddo (2012), Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Workspace Residency (2008), and American Academy in Rome Affiliate Fellowship (2008).

Aaron Gilbert • g • o • p • u • f • f •, 2025 Oil on linen 66 x 129 inches (167.6 x 327.7 cm) © Aaron Gilbert Courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Photography by David RegenAaron Gilbert The Fourth Way, 2024 Oil on linen 108 x 74 3/8 inches (274.3 x 188.6 cm) © Aaron Gilbert Courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Photography by David RegenAaron Gilbert Judah (Al Green), 2024 Oil on linen 21 3/4 x 28 7/8 inches (55.2 x 73.7 cm) © Aaron Gilbert Courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Photography by David Regen