Out of Control
curated by Peter & Sally Saul
June 28 - August 3, 2018
Opening: Thursday, June 28th, 6:00 - 8:00 pm

Venus Over Manhattan
980 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10075

(New York, NY) – Venus Over Manhattan is pleased to present Out of Control, a group show curated by Peter and Sally Saul. The exhibition, featuring some forty-five works by thirty-seven artists, will be on view from June 28th through August 10th, 2018.

In a new and exciting collaboration, the Sauls have curated a group exhibition that reflects their current interests, longtime passions, friendships, and overall great taste. Peter and Sally write: “This is a show of some artists we’ve known for years, plus some recent discoveries, and a few that came to mind spontaneously. We hope to arrange the show so there’s every type of contrast, visual, mental, and emotional, just as long as it keeps you looking.” Out of Control functions as a map of Peter and Sally’s creative networks: featuring works in nearly all media by artists from numerous generations, the exhibition testifies to the friendships they’ve established, the artists they’ve come to admire, and in certain cases, the influence they’ve had on younger generations.

Though Peter works mostly in paint, and Sally works mostly in ceramic, the show they’ve assembled pledges no allegiance to any particular medium or style. The Sauls share a taste for work with palpable visual energy, usually executed with kaleidoscopic colors, that often engages visual humor. They’ve included both abstract and representational work, and when narrative is present, its content tends to be raucous and unlikely, often invented, and occasionally offensive. Each piece can trace its way back to Peter and Sally, and they’ve chosen works by their peers, their students, and artists they’ve come to admire.

From their own generations, Peter and Sally have included paintings, sculptures, and works on paper by R. Crumb, Roy De Forest, Mark Greenwold, E’wao Kagoshima, Gladys Nilsson, Thomas Nozkowski, Jim Nutt, Joyce Robins, Arlene Shechet, William T. Williams, and Karl Wirsum. Peter came to know a number of these artists when exhibiting alongside the Chicago Imagists, and Funk artists from the San Francisco Bay Area; the other artists, Peter and Sally have come to know since moving to and exhibiting in New York. From younger generations, they’ve included works by Polly Apfelbaum, Tom Burckhardt, Kathy Butterly, Carroll Dunham, Eric Fischl, Jason Fox, Tamara Gonzales, Joanne Greenbaum, Betsy Kaufman, Chris Martin, David Sandlin, Katia Santibañez, Robert Storr, and James Siena, many of whom came to prominence in the 1980s and 1990s, often upending standard hierarchies with regard their respective materials. Also featured are works by Nina Chanel Abney, Joe Bradley, KAWS, Erik Parker, Dana Schutz, and Adrianne Rubenstein, who variously admire,  have championed, or were students of Peter and Sally. Finally a set of works by Sarah Carpenter, Silvester Hustito, and Elbert Perez, represent a group of emerging artists the Sauls have come to appreciate and support. Taken together, the works on view assemble a dual portrait of Peter and Sally Saul, simultaneously tracking their histories, honoring their friendships, and recognizing their contributions to younger generations.

ABOUT THE CURATORS

PETER SAUL (b. 1934, San Francisco) attended the California School of Fine Arts, and the Washington University School of Fine Arts. Saul’s work has been the subject of numerous international solo presentations, including recent exhibitions at the Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt; Venus Over Manhattan, New York; the Hall Art Foundation, Reading; Gallery Met at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York; the Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Bach; the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Mons, Belgium; and the Musée de l’Hôtel Bertrant, Dole. His work is held in the collection of public institutions both stateside and abroad, including the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago; the Centre Pompidou, Paris; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. In 2010, Saul was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Saul lives and works in Germantown, New York.

SALLY SAUL (b. 1946, New York) attended the University of Colorado, and San Francisco State University. Saul’s work has been the subject of numerous solo presentations, including exhibitions at Rachel Uffner Gallery, New York; Redbud Gallery, Houston; and Trans Avant Garde Gallery, Austin. Her work is frequently featured in important group exhibitions, including recent presentations at Almine Rech Gallery, New York; Jack Hanley Gallery, New York; Nathalie Karg Gallery, New York, the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield; Venus Over Los Angeles, Los Angeles; Cuevas/Tilleard Projects, New York; and CANADA, New York. In 2017, her New York solo debut, “Sally Saul: Knit of Identity,” was reviewed by The New York Times. Saul lives and works in Germantown, New York

For further information about the exhibition and availability, please contact the gallery at info@venusovermanhattan.com

For all press inquiries related to the exhibition, please email press@venusovermanhattan.com