Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 16

Joel Handorff
Painting of Bouquet of flowers on canvas : 'Red Pom Poms'

2018

About the Item

‘Starting with a drawing of "real" flowers, I create layers of thinly veiled surfaces. They become abstracted through the process of multiple printings. The essence of flowers becomes the subject—they bring to mind all of the flowers I have ever seen and all the ones I have seen in great works of art. They are a reflection, a kind of magic mirror, defying traditional paintings of flowers.’ As Handorff explains, “the Magic Mirror is about creating a style that is seen and not seen. These new paintings explore aspects of transparency. The works are created with embroidered templates, which are then placed upon materials of varying degrees of opacity and translucence. Paint is pounded onto the surface created by these templates, generating multiple images that reflect the original.” The resulting images are reflections of themselves: ghost images. The pieces are displayed in idiosyncratic fashion, sometimes breaking from the wall. In a way, they are performances in action. For Handorff, the idea of transparency in his work goes back to earlier pieces that were painted on the backs of Plexiglas sheets, in other words, the images were painted in reverse. The idea of Magic Mirror is connected to a sense of community in various ways. First of all, it is an allegory of the East Village scene of the 80s, a rich period of experimentation and multiple styles that all but disappeared soon after it began…a sort of vanishing world, which created a legacy. Also, the term Magic Mirror emerged as a moniker during spontaneous drawing sessions in Handorff’s apartment. Artist friends first started drawing portraits of each other, to later incorporate writing into the pictures, and eventually leading to two or more friends drawing and painting on the same work. The output of these get-togethers, documented on social media and archived in sketchbooks at Handorff’s apartment, created a body of work that in retrospect reveals a common meshing and influence of artist friends on each other. For Handorff in particular, these explorations transformed his work and also offered the added advantage of perceiving himself as an artist in a novel way—one who is not competitive or concerned with authorship. This makes the work transcendental, giving the artist the freedom to create a body of work that explores the magical aspect of artmaking under the umbrella of artistic community, giving the confidence and freedom of a deeper sense of art. The process for these paints started in the drawing sessions, where the collaborative experience fed the dynamism of the pieces in the studio. The dream flowers melt and fold into a mysterious space. If you look at these works, at the materials themselves, some emerge while others disappear. The important part of these works is what is not seen…rather what is suggested within the natural world of flowers. Surfaces mix and match with overlays. In the end, they are not representations of flowers per se, but vessels of the essence of a flower in itself. The Magic Mirror is about transcendence, a sort of Plato’s cave in which the shadows are indicators of a greater reality. Joel Handorff is a New York-based artist who has exhibited widely and is included in many collections including the Weisman Art Museum. In the 1980s he participated in the East Village art scene as artist, curator, and gallerist, running Dramatis Personae. He has exhibited at the Terry Dintenfass Gallery, Harm Bouckaert Gallery, and MoMA PS1. His work has been reviewed by Vivien Raynor of the New York Times and Theodore Wolff of the Christian Science Monitor. In 2012, he received a Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant. His work was exhibited at the Leslie-Lohman Museum’s seminal Interface show, which was curated by Walter Cessna, as well as the Jonathan Weinberg-curated Painting to Survive show at the Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition.
  • Creator:
  • Creation Year:
    2018
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 24 in (60.96 cm)Width: 10 in (25.4 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    New York, NY
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: JH/RedPomPoms1stDibs: LU42234655642

More From This Seller

View All
Painting of flowers on canvas: 'Green Backyard'
By Joel Handorff
Located in New York, NY
‘Starting with a drawing of "real" flowers, I create layers of thinly veiled surfaces. They become abstracted through the process of multiple printings. The essence of flowers become...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Large Painting on raw canvas of Bouquet of Flowers: 'America Blue'
By Joel Handorff
Located in New York, NY
‘Starting with a drawing of "real" flowers, I create layers of thinly veiled surfaces. They become abstracted through the process of multiple printings. The essence of flowers become...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Socially conscious painting: “Portrait Of Waste”
By Stephen Hall
Located in New York, NY
"A crumpled blue plastic water bottle, set against a vibrant red fur-like background, is presented within a trompe l'oeil painted gilt wood frame. This composition draws attention to...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Acrylic on Canvas: “A Blight On The Landscape”
By Stephen Hall
Located in New York, NY
"A common black plastic garbage bag, set against a lush, verdant landscape, is elevated in significance by a meticulously painted trompe-l'œil gilt wood frame rendered directly onto ...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Red Relic
By Stephen Hall
Located in New York, NY
Stephen Hall's thought-provoking imagery draws attention to the profound impact of consumer culture on the environment, emphasizing the urgency of addressing climate change. Through ...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Acrylic on Canvas: 'Luxury’s Price'
By Stephen Hall
Located in New York, NY
Stephen Hall, born in Scotland, is an artist who takes a traditional approach to a modern subject. Now living in New York, his work is indicative of a surging talent, which has been ...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

You May Also Like

Damaged Goods
By Luca Vigorelli
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Acrylic and oil stick on gesso primed canvas.
Category

2010s Contemporary Mixed Media

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Damaged Goods
$3,680 Sale Price
20% Off
Oh Yes to Heirloom Bearded Irises_America Martin_oil/acrylic/canvas_still life
By America Martin
Located in 326 N Coast Hwy. | Laguna Beach, CA
America Martin "Oh Yes to Heirloom Bearded Irises" Oil & Acrylic on Canvas 26" x 19.5" Framed Exploring the identity of both her namesake and country, LA-based America Martin draws ...
Category

2010s Contemporary Mixed Media

Materials

Acrylic, Canvas, Oil

"My Limoge" flower vase on the kitchen table contrasts against house patterns
By Anne Harney
Located in Edgartown, MA
“Never taking anything for granted, I am so grateful to be able to paint every day.” Anne Harney is a representational painter beginning her work from observation and concluding wit...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Oil, Canvas, Acrylic

"Vineyard Bound" fish, oysters, and flowers garnish a seaside kitchen table
By Anne Harney
Located in Edgartown, MA
“Never taking anything for granted, I am so grateful to be able to paint every day.” Anne Harney is a representational painter beginning her work from observation and concluding wit...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic

Pots, Contain Universe Acrylic Pigment on Canvas, Black, Green, Grey "In Stock"
By Madhu Basu
Located in Kolkata, West Bengal
Madhu Basu - Magma n°244 - 25.75 X 21.25 inches (unframed size) Acrylic & Pigment on canvas Inclusive of shipment in roll form. Vessels and pots being of importance in Madhu Bas...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic, Pigment, Charcoal

Panel in Acrylic; Changing Seasons, Time; Blues, Violets, Sky colors "In Stock"
By Pradosh Swain
Located in Kolkata, West Bengal
Pradosh Swain - Longing Past III - 24 x 60 inches (unframed size) Acrylic on canvas Inclusive of shipment in a roll form. "Pradosh’s paintings have a surrealistic quality, the imagery is dreamy and mystical and rendering is such as if there is some kind of romance and magic happening amongst the colours in his palette. His paintings are the result of brilliant culminations of feelings and things that are between imagination and reality." Style : Pradosh’s works can be described as psychic automatism in its pure state. His works are expressive and his palette vibrant and gorgeous. Nature is the frequent imagery that we see in his paintings. Sometimes his imagery is outlandish, perplexing and uncanny as it is meant to shake the viewer and make them to think beyond the theories which they have guarded themselves with. Lot of elements that we see in pradosh’s paintings also come from his childhood days in Odisha. His paintings often take us on a nostalgic ride where we see elements which we were so used to and have now learnt to live without. He uses common elements that we see in our day to day life to convey his feelings and thought which makes his works all the more interesting. His paintings leave the viewer perplexed at the first glance but a deeper look gives the insight into his thoughts that instigate him to create. Pradosh’s paintings have a surrealistic quality, the imagery is dreamy and mystical and rendering is such as if there is some kind of romance and magic happening amongst the colours in his palette. His paintings are the result of brilliant culminations of feelings and things that are between imagination and reality. They reflect his genuine concern about issues he feels for. He emphasizes on the power of imagination and believes that revelation could be found anywhere….on the streets and in everyday life. Through his paintings artist depicts the notion that how our high pace life is making all of us loose that contact from the nature or even with ourselves. About the Artist and his work : Born : 1972 , Orissa. Education : 1994 : Bachelor in Fine Arts from Utkal University. 1989 : Diploma in Photographic from College of Education and Technology, Bubaneswar 2005 : Certificate Course on Reprography from National archives of India, New Delhi. 2007 : Conservation of Art Objects from National Research Laboratory for Conservation of Cultural Property, Lucknow. Solo Exhibition : Inter National Group Show by Ashok Art Gallery, New Delhi. Look Now, Lucknow Rastriya Lalit Kala Kendra, Lucknow – 2007 Kalingana, Birla Academy, Kolkata – 2006 FIFA world Cup – 2006, Orissa State Museum, Bhubaneswar – 2006 Yatra, Venkatapa Art Gallery, Bangalore – 2006 Towards Horizon, Jayadev Bhawan, Bhubaneswar – 2006 Jagannatayan, Rabindra Mandap, Bhubaneswar – 2005 Sand Watch...
Category

2010s Contemporary Still-life Paintings

Materials

Metal

Recently Viewed

View All