Lisa Yuskavage at DAVID ZWIRNER

James Kalm takes a break from critiquing the Occupy Wall Street protest and returns to his more noted roll as art world maven with this brief tour of the work of Lisa Yuskavage. For nearly twenty years Yuskavage has been shocking the New York painting audience with her unique melding of pornographically cartoonist imagery. Depicting young women with pendulous breasts and bellies swollen in plentitude, these figures are virtually expanding with erotic potential, made visual through the artist's articulate rendering, and sensual color. This show presents some of the largest painting yet produced by Yuskavage and reveals her increasing interest in vast cinematic landscapes.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• James
• Kalm
• Lisa
• Yuskavage
• David
• Zwirner
• art
• gallery
• painting
• drawing
• sculpture
• erotic
• big
• breasts
• boobs
• Post-Modern
• surrealism
• pornography

[CharlesFVincent]

Does her work have that look of oil paint when you are present with it? She uses so much technique from illustration which I associate more with acrylic. It would be cool to see it in person, especially if it had the oil patina that comes from the setting process, instead of the bold presence that comes from fast-drying acrylic. It would be a subtle contradiction that you could look for within the more obviously charged parts of the work.

[jameskalm]

@CharlesFVincent Yeah, she's a very good oil painter, These pieces have nice surfaces and there are aspects of the thin dry paint handling that are very appealing.

[eenkjet]

there is no better way to prostitute one's self in the art world than to go straight for the sexual jugular.

[LeukipposInstitute]

Thanks a lot for your very good documentation of the NY art scene. I love to watch your videos. Your one of the best art documentators around. Thanks for your work.

[popeyeisgood]

@dustXiron

insightful--maybe when she just started doing this for a few years..if you know her work better you can see that she has been doing the exact same thing since mid 90s, who knows, maybe even earlier. what she is doing now is bigger, more ambitious work around the same damn subject matter, yawn. technically not even close to brilliant and conceptually boring. i usually like david zwirner's taste but in this case it is the opposite, but guess what, she sells therefore she is.

[Kelpy]

the young lady accordianiste is great!

[mcdesignarts]

this was great! your OWS is BS!

[dustXiron]

I don't believe she is trying to promote or discredit hypersexuality in women, but is rather taking the neutral role of observing what women's sexuality was and what it has become. The way I see it, she is trying to portray how the woman "sex object" has become an innocent, candy licking young girl and turns that idea into a cartoonish parody. She almost seems to be laughing at modern sex culture. I think it's insightful.

[seraVmiskiel]

Interesting, definitley has shock value and appeals to a younger audience; however, does not seem to advance the image of women. Obviously a talented graphic master. But I'm not sure if she's pro or con hypersexualing women just from looking at the work. I don't look at a resume to explain visual art and feel that it should speak on its own. The content is unclear to me. I do admire her ability though. Thanks so much for posting this for those of us who can't make these openings.