New York, March, 2025

SoHo Loft Project

The Opening Gallery is pleased to present a new project focusing on the history and present of New York SoHo Lofts featuring a group exhibition entitled LATE START FOR MARDI GRAS, a collaborative project between Max Blagg & 21 featured artists on April 9, 2025, from 6.30-9 PM at 115 Wooster Street.

Max Blagg will read a selection of poems from the series, accompanied by a group exhibition of the 21 corresponding collaborative artworks.

THE SOHO LOFT PROJECT

SoHo and New York City in the 1970s were pivotal in shaping the landscape of fine arts and interdisciplinary arts. The neighborhood of SoHo, originally a manufacturing district, became a haven for artists seeking affordable studio spaces. The rent was low, and the large, open lofts provided ideal environments for creative experimentation. Artists began to form communities, creating a collaborative atmosphere that encouraged interdisciplinary approaches. This led to innovative crossovers between painting, sculpture, performance, and installation art.

The 1970s saw the rise of Minimalism and Conceptual Art, movements that challenged traditional notions of art. Artists like Donald Judd and Sol LeWitt based their practices in SoHo, pushing boundaries and exploring new ideas about form and concept. These movements emphasized ideas over aesthetics, paving the way for future interdisciplinary practices where art could intersect with philosophy, language, and social commentary. SoHo became a center for performance art, with artists like Marina Abramović and Laurie Anderson pushing the limits of what art could be. Performance art often blended elements of theater, dance, and visual arts, reflecting the fluidity of artistic boundaries. The era’s focus on personal narrative and the body as a medium allowed artists to engage directly with social issues, making art a tool for activism and dialogue.

The social upheaval of the 1970s, including movements for civil rights, feminism, and LGBTQ+ rights, influenced artists to reflect on and respond to contemporary issues. Art became a way to challenge societal norms and provoke thought.The rise of alternative spaces and galleries in SoHo provided platforms for marginalized voices, leading to a more inclusive art scene that highlighted issues of identity, race, and gender. Major institutions like the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and the Whitney Museum began to recognize and support the burgeoning contemporary art scene. This validation helped to legitimize new artistic practices and broadened the public’s understanding of what constituted art. The establishment of new galleries and art spaces in SoHo and beyond facilitated the promotion of emerging artists, fostering a vibrant ecosystem for innovation.

Artists in the 1970s often collaborated with musicians, dancers, filmmakers, and writers, breaking down the barriers between disciplines. This intersection led to groundbreaking works that influenced multiple fields. The integration of technology into art also began to take shape during this era, with artists experimenting with video, sound, and new media, laying the groundwork for future digital art movements.

The impact of SoHo and New York City in the 1970s on fine arts and interdisciplinary arts cannot be overstated. The convergence of artist communities, innovative movements, and a politically charged atmosphere fostered an environment ripe for experimentation and collaboration. This period not only transformed the art world but also set the stage for contemporary practices that continue to evolve today. The social movements of the 1970s had a profound influence on artistic expression, shaping the themes, styles, and practices of artists across various disciplines.

Artists began to address issues of race, identity, and social justice in their work. The civil rights struggle inspired African American artists to create pieces that reflected their experiences and the fight against systemic racism. Movements like the Black Arts Movement emphasized the importance of cultural identity, leading to a resurgence of African and African American themes in visual arts, literature, and performance.

Feminism challenged traditional gender roles and the way women were represented in art. Female artists sought to reclaim their narratives and address issues such as objectification, sexuality, and domesticity. Artists like Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro created works that celebrated women’s experiences and contributions, often using mixed media and installation to convey their messages. The feminist art movement also encouraged collaboration and community, leading to the establishment of women-focused art spaces and exhibitions.The fight for LGBTQ+ rights gained momentum in the 1970s, with artists using their work to advocate for visibility and acceptance. This was reflected in art that addressed themes of sexuality, identity, and community.

Artists such as David Hockney and Keith Haring brought queer identity into the mainstream, using bold colors and imagery to challenge societal norms and promote LGBTQ+ culture. Growing awareness of environmental issues in the 1970s inspired artists to explore themes related to nature, ecology, and sustainability. Eco-artists began to use natural materials and engage with the landscape in their work. This movement encouraged a shift towards art that not only represented environmental issues but also sought to raise awareness and inspire action for ecological preservation.

The Vietnam War sparked widespread protests and dissent, leading artists to create politically charged works that critiqued war and militarism. This resulted in powerful imagery that conveyed the horrors of conflict and the impact on society. Artists used various mediums, including posters, photography, and performance, to communicate their anti-war sentiments and engage audiences in discussions about peace and justice. The counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s brought about a rejection of mainstream values, which influenced artistic expression. Artists experimented with psychedelic art, street art, and new media, embracing non-traditional forms and styles. This period saw the rise of performance art and happenings, where the boundary between artist and audience blurred, reflecting the era’s emphasis on experiential and participatory art.

The interconnectedness of various social movements led to a more nuanced understanding of identity and experience in art. Artists began to explore the intersections of race, gender, sexuality, and class, creating works that reflected the complexity of contemporary society. This emphasis on intersectionality contributed to a broader and more inclusive art discourse, prompting artists to engage with multiple perspectives and narratives.

The social movements of the 1970s were instrumental in shaping artistic expression, leading to a more politically engaged and socially conscious art scene. Artists responded to the challenges and changes in society, using their work as a platform for advocacy, reflection, and innovation. This era laid the groundwork for contemporary art practices that continue to explore and address pressing social issues.

MAX BLAGG

GROUP EXHIBITION “LATE START FOR MARDI GRAS”

LATE START FOR MARDI GRAS began in 2019 with a 200-page printout of a Blagg manuscript from 2011, randomly stitched onto raw canvas by J. Huminska, and tacked to his studio walls for further editing and redaction while he convalesced from a tick-borne illness. As the canvases accumulated and he recovered, Blagg began inviting artists to embellish, demolish, erase or praise the ‘text-canvases’, however they saw fit. Artists chose their piece by title or text, working directly on the canvas or in some cases creating an entirely new piece. The project took its name from the 1st piece completed, entitled LSFMG, by Walter Robinson.

This collaboration eventually culminated in a collection of 21 poems and 21 artworks, that were reproduced in a 7-volume series of red thread stitch bound, hand assembled and boxed sets of booklets in NYC, published in an edition of 50. LSFMG features the work of the following artists: Golnar Adili, Ellen Berkenblit, Ernesto Caivano, Michael Combs, Peter Dayton, Sally Egbert, Eric Fischl, James Gilroy, Nan Goldin, Michael Halsband, Curtis Kulig, Justen Ladda, Ruth Marten, Jamie Nares, Walter Robinson, Nick Rule, Will Ryman, Ken Tisa, Walter Schrank, Ryan Wallace, and Lucy Winton. This 192-page softcover compendium mirrors the project’s booklet series in its entirety.

MAX BLAGG

Max Blagg, born in England, has lived in NYC since 1971. Long recognized as a highly respected poet, visual artist and performer on the New York art & literary scene, he has appeared at innumerable venues including Tin Pan Alley, Jackie 60, Kitchen, Drawing Center, Guggenheim Museum, Parrish Museum, St. Mark’s Church, The National Arts Club & Bowery Poetry Club. Blagg has also been collaborating with artists since the 1970’s, notably the Hotel Firbank Project with Ken Tisa, featured at PS 1 in 1980, and a poem/painting with Richard Prince as part of the “Protest Paintings” series that was included in Prince’s retrospective at Guggenheim Museum, 2007; Collaborative readings/performances with Ethyl Eichelberger, Nan Goldin; and written collaborative texts for various artists including Alex Katz, James Brown, Ralph Gibson, Larry Clark, Jerelyn Hanrahan, and Keith Sonnier. Blagg has published several volumes of poetry & prose internationally & in the U.S. with Aloes Books, Carpe Diem Press, Lumen Editions/Boston, and Shallow Books. He lives in New York City, where he continues to write, collaborate, and liberate his poetry from the page, onto walls, windows, tree stumps and other moveable and stationary objects.

May, 2025

The New York Arab Festival (NYAF) culminates its fourth edition with a vibrant, day-long celebration titled The Alchemist’s Recipes, hosted at the iconic Atelier Jolie at 57 Great Jones Street. The event takes place on May 31 from 11:00am-6:00pm.

This closing art-marathon honors the legacy of Moroccan painter and playwright Ahmed Yacoubi, weaving together his visual art with contemporary Arab voices through food, poetry, film, and live performance.

This closing event is co-curated by Sozita Goudouna and Adham Hafez, and presented in partnership with The Invisible Dog Art Center. The event runs from 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM. It features rare works from the Ahmed Yacoubi Collection, exhibited for the first time at Atelier Jolie. The program includes a Moroccan mint tea welcome, a tagine lunch by Chef Rkia of OffBeat Eats—a collective of refugee and displaced chefs, a talk by curator and writer Omar Berrada on the stories of self-taught artist Ahmed Yacoubi and his exchanges with New York galleries, a cooking demonstration by Lucien Zayan based on Ahmed Yacoubi’s iconic book ‘the Alchemist’s Recipes’, a reading by actor and writer Amr Kotb based on the works of Ahmed Yacoubi, and a closing solo acoustic set by Tunisian-American star EMEL, presenting a selection of her iconic songs in an unplugged setting for the first time. Throughout the day, Arab art films will be screened in the basement studio, and selected paintings by Ahmed Yacoubi will be on display.

Atelier Jolie, founded by Angelina Jolie, is a socially conscious fashion studio located in a historic building that once housed artists Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat. The venue's rich artistic heritage and commitment to community engagement make it a fitting location for this celebration of Arab culture, as well as the closing events for the New York Arab Festival (NYAF) this year, concluding a two-month-long program of arts and culture.

NYAF is curated by Adham Hafez, produced by Cindy Sibilsky, managed by Sandra Geovany, Nader Hafez and Adam Kucharski, with the RASEEF program on art, architecture and urbanism curated by Adam Kucharski. The festival is a project of HaRaKa Platform and is powered by Wizara. This year’s focus on art history is supported by Tawareekh: Contemporary Arab Art Histories, an art-history documentation project by scholar, curator and artist Adham Hafez.

Established by Arab, Arab American, and American curators, producers, and artists, New York Arab Festival is New York City's premier festival dedicated to Arab and Arab American arts and culture. Each year, the festival presents a diverse array of performances, exhibitions, panels, films, concerts, and culinary events across multiple boroughs. This year's edition emphasized themes of resilience and transformation, featuring artists from Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Tunisia, and Palestine.

ABOUT NYAF: A Celebration of Arab Arts and Voices

The New York Arab Festival (NYAF) was founded in 2022 by Arab, Arab American, and American artists, curators, and producers to amplify the voices and creative expression of Arab communities in the U.S. and abroad. Over the past four editions, the festival has grown into a city-wide cultural movement, offering performances, panels, exhibitions, culinary experiences, and film screenings across all five boroughs. Highlights have included artists such as filmmaker and choreographer Sarah Brahim (KSA), singer and performance artist H. Sinno (Lebanon), filmmaker and multimedia artist Khaled Jarrar (Palestine), composer Maurice Louca (Egypt), Choreographer Leyya Mona Tawil (US/Syria/Palestine), fashion designer Mona Hamid (Sudan/ USA), poet and writer Zeinab Ftes (Libya) among others. The festival is made possible through partnerships with esteemed New York institutions and spaces, including the Museum of the Moving Image, National Sawdust, Atelier Jolie, La MaMa ETC, Nublu, LPR, The Invisible Dog, among many others.

New York, 2025

The Opening Gallery is pleased to collaborate with Spanish artist Joan Bofill for the upcoming exhibition: Joan Bofill. Double portrait, curated by Carlo McCormick. Installed across The Angel Orensanz Foundation the exhibition inaugurates The Opening Gallery’s program of location driven projects in Manhattan.

Spanish artist's innovative practice merges documentary filmmaking with portraiture in rare New York exhibition.

There's a moment in every meaningful conversation when the formal structure dissolves and something unexpected emerges—a gesture, a pause, an unguarded revelation. Spanish visual artist Joan Bofill has built a practice around capturing these ephemeral instants, transforming intimate dialogues with cultural figures into what he calls Double portraits—works that exist simultaneously as drawings and filmed conversations.

Bofill's exhibition Double portrait: paintings in conversation opens October 16 at the Angel Orensanz Foundation, marking a rare New York presentation of work that challenges conventional notions of both portraiture and documentary. The show runs for just two days, creating its own sense of occasion inspired by Raymond Roussel's theatrical imagination.

"Roussel gave me the assurance that I too had a voice, capable of navigating between reason and intuition," Bofill explains.

The project emerged from Bofill's documentary work on the enigmatic French writer. "During those interviews, I began sketching people I spoke with—sometimes just quick notes during a phone call," he recalls. What started as incidental portraiture evolved into deliberate practice where drawing and conversation became inseparable.

The breakthrough came with Bofill's documentary film The hanging of Stuart Cornfeld—selected to premiere at the American Film Institute Festival on October 23, 2025. Bofill interviewed the iconoclastic producer (The elephant man, History of the world part 1, Zoolander, Tropic thunder) while simultaneously drawing his portrait. "I alternated structured questions with open conversation while drawing. The result was not only an image, but a trace of encounter."

That trace became the foundation for portraits of filmmakers David Lynch, Claudia Llosa, David Cronenberg, Guillermo del Toro, and Mel Brooks; artists Jan Švankmajer, Joe Coleman, Robt. Williams, and performance artist Johanna Went; writers George Saunders, Michel Butor, and Armando Valladares; musician Jon Batiste; chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov; and most recently, previously exiled Princess Elizabeth Karadordevic, daughter of Paul of Yugoslavia, in Belgrade.

Bofill resists celebrity framing. "Through each conversation an almost Venn-like collective of connection emerges where the portraits become more about the spirit and artifacts of the encounters themselves," he says. The drawings—initially made with whatever materials were at hand, later with markers (like his Lynch portrait), eventually settling into graphite and Chinese ink—capture the rhythm of thought, the cadence of speech, the particular attention that emerges when two people sit in focused dialogue.

The "double" in Double Portrait refers to this multiplicity. Each work exists as both object and document. Visitors encounter drawings alongside screens displaying the conversations that generated them—a hybrid form existing between media.

For this presentation, Bofill expands into Paintings in conversation, incorporating paintings and works from different periods. The centerpiece is a rare Japanese Roussel edition, originally dedicated "to Joan Bofill" with the name torn away. Bofill inscribed his own name. "I invited myself into his game."

The Angel Orensanz Foundation's neo-Gothic synagogue provides an ideal setting for work existing at the intersection of portraiture and documentary, European and American perspectives, intimate conversation, and public presentation.

"To portray is not only to depict a face, but to celebrate encounter in its broadest sense," Bofill explains. In an era when authentic cultural dialogue feels increasingly rare, his practice offers proof that meaningful exchange remains possible…and vitally important.