Several artworks by Suellen Rocca, Elmhurst College’s curator/director of exhibits, are making a mark and gaining critical raves as part of an exhibition at one of the biggest galleries in New York City’s Chelsea neighborhood.
The exhibition, “What Nerve! Alternative Figures in American Art, 1960 to the Present,” runs through August 14 at the Matthew Marks Gallery, and includes several of Rocca’s paintings, drawings and objects. “What Nerve” focuses on four groups of artists practicing away from the cultural capitals of New York and Los Angeles. One of those groups is the Chicago-based Hairy Who, which exhibited from 1966 to 1969 and whose members included Rocca, Jim Falconer, Art Green, Gladys Nilsson, Jim Nutt and Karl Wirsum.
“This exhibition reassesses the artists associated with these four groups,” according to the Matthew Marks Gallery, “by providing a new understanding of their influence on contemporary art history.”
High-profile New York media outlets, including The New Yorker, Artforum and WNYC-FM, New York City’s flagship public radio station, have enthusiastically recommended the exhibition. Artforum.com selected it as its Critics’ Pick and, on a recent broadcast of the Morning Edition program, WNYC art critic Deborah Solomon described the works as “incredibly fresh…” She also noted that it was her first time viewing Rocca’s work, and that she “fell in love with” a piece by Rocca titled “Purse Curse.”
For more information about the “What Nerve!” exhibition, see the Matthew Marks Gallery’s website.