Louis Reed
568 Grand St 10002
info@louisreed.nyc
Valentina Vaccarella
Post-Fair
Booth 4, February 20 - February 22
Louis Reed is pleased to present a solo booth of new works from Valentina Vaccarella (b. 1993, New York) at Post-Fair.
I’ll tell you how the booth came to be. When I first came across Valentina’s works I was smitten. They attracted me, a gallerist with an eye for sculpture and painting, when they were solidly neither. Materially they were photo transfers of female politicians and madames onto European wedding linens and aluminum. The works were raunchy and smart, but more smart than raunchy. Similarly, they captured the power of sex, but even more, embodied the aphrodisiac that is power.
Valentina has brought the same energy to the works that will be featured in our booth. She went out on a limb by moving from a practice grounded in photography to making six oil paintings. The works feature the words Déjà Vu, stamped, rolled, brushed, and wiped across linen. The lure of repetition, the depth of unmixed Old Holland paints, and a reference to Deja Vu Services, Inc. mingle on the surface of each work. By the way, Deja Vu Services was founded by Harry Mohney, an elusive man often referred to as the “Howard Hughes of Porn.” I’ll let you do the research...
For me, the best part of the paintings is how the paint is applied, none of the nerdiness or anal self indulgence of a photo realistic or hard edge devotee is present. What you see is something better, freer, akin to Michael Majerus lounging at the Viper Room.
Accompanying the paintings are 27 collages from 1993, all feature autographed photos from the likes of Catherine Deneuve to minor adult actresses. No one is liberated and no one is caged. These are simply part of the world of an artist who listens to CNBC while she paints, perusing Bob Guccione drawings on auction. I needed to show Valentina’s work because in a world of artists who constantly perform being raw, intelligent, and interesting, she actually is.
Lou
