Esther Pearl Watson, Due to Transportation (2019) © Esther Pearl Watson, courtesy of Maureen Paley
Esther Pearl Watson[hhmc]
Maureen Paley, London, 4-22 September
Esther Pearl Watsons father used to build flying saucers, hence her child-like paintings always feature UFOs. Perhaps best known for her 2009 graphic novel, Unloveable, based on a teenagers diary from the 1980s, the Texas-born, Los Angeles-based artist paints from memory with a hefty dose of fantasy, depicting scenes of American life with an eerie yet comic feel. Inspired by Outsider artists, her works are reminiscent of a space-age Grandma Moses. Maureen Paley has just started representing Watson and this is her first UK show.
Amy Sherald, When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be (2018) Photo: Joseph Hyde
Amy Sherald: The heart of the matter…[hhmc]
Hauser & Wirth, New York,10 September-26 October
Featuring new works by Amy Sherald, The heart of the matter… is the artists first solo show with Hauser & Wirth since the mega-gallery announced its representation of the painter after her high-profile (if controversial) portrait of the former First Lady Michelle Obama was installed at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC last year. The show also comes shortly after the Baltimore-based artist, known for her colourful yet flat portraits of African Americans in which the subjects skin is rendered in grayscale, made her auction debut. Her Innocent You, Innocent Me (2016) sold for $350,000—three times its estimate—at Christies New York in May.
Ayana V. Jackson, Consider the Sky and the Sea, 2019 Courtesy of Marianne Ibrahim Gallery
