By Andrew Russeth 5/21 6:19pm

On View

'Siegfrid’s' (2013) by Alex Hubbard. (Courtesy the artist and Maccarone)

‘Alex Hubbard: Magical Ramón and The Five Bar Blues’ at Maccarone

The hints of melancholia and breezy bathos that have long made Alex Hubbard’s work so interesting are strongly present in his newest pieces, called “one-person portable drinking bars.” These five Kienholz-worthy stalls are each about the size of two phone booths and stocked with alcohol, complete with a working beer tap. You can saddle up to the bar with its lone chair, pour a drink and enjoy it while staring at yourself in a mirror. It’s playful and humorous—until it gets lonely. Whatever Mr. Hubbard means to get at with these boîtes—the inherently solitary nature of looking at art?—this show, his sophomore outing at Maccarone, has him bringing his typically inventive, light touch to a variety of mediums, and continuing to eschew a signature style, a refreshing stance in a city that all but demands its artists adopt a recognizable brand. Read More

By Andrew Russeth 4/12/12 7:15pm

Real Estate

The windows of Maccarone during the 2011 exhibition "After Shelley Duvall '72," curated by Bjarne Melgaard. (Courtesy The Observer)

Maccarone Will Expand Into Dry Cleaner Next Door

Come September, the West Village’s Maccarone gallery, located at 630 Greenwich, will become a bit larger. Carol Vogel reports in The New York Times that proprietress Michele Maccarone has acquired the lease for the dry cleaner next door, Slate NYC (its slogan is “permission to get dirty,” which could apply to not a few of the gallery’s artists). The gallery will unveil the new space in September with a show by artist Rodney McMillian. Read More

By Andrew Russeth 10/21/11 3:45pm

Art

5 Photos

After Shelley Duvall '72 (Frogs on the Highline) at Maccarone.

‘After Shelley Duvall’: Bjarne Melgaard on Curating at Maccarone

Take just one moment and visit stabfrenzy.com, a website run by the Norwegian painter Bjarne Melgaard on which he documents some of his work.

We just did and, clicking through the pages at random, saw a photograph of Mr. Melgaard shirtless, cradling two small dogs, as well as dozens of installation views of his shows at galleries around the world. There are scores of his paintings too, which look like they were produced by a manic, enraged neo-expressionist. There are bulbous cartoon figures and photorealistic images of elderly people and a child soldier. There are neon works too: “THE WORLD IS FULL OF RICH CORRUPTED CUNTS,” one reads.

“The idea of Stab Frenzy was showing how much was produced,” Mr. Melgaard told us. “I feel in New York people are very careful. I prefer to make 500 paintings here. You’re not supposed to do that because you can’t really auction results.” He speaks quickly and calmy, with a thin Scandinavian accent that sounds somehow German. “Sometimes I feel like making five and sometimes I feel like making 5,000.” Read More