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The Arts Intel Report

Exemplary Modern Sophie Taeuber-Arp With Contemporary Artists

Sophie Taeuber-Arp in Strasbourg, France, in 1927.

Sept 6 – Nov 4, 2023
32 E 69th Street, New York, NY 10021, United States

Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889–1943) was the queen of Dada, among other things (she was also the wife of Jean Arp). Using utilitarian objects and geometric abstraction, she challenged the traditional hierarchy that elevated fine art over applied art, and brought the energy of dance into textile designs, paintings, and sculpture. Taeuber-Arp died prematurely in 1943, killed by accidental carbon monoxide poisoning, and yet her work still feels distinctly contemporary. This exhibition juxtaposes her pioneering aesthetic with three of today’s most exciting artists: Leonor Antunes, a Portuguese installation artist; Ellen Lesperance, known for gouache paintings based on flat sewing and knitting patterns; and Nicolas Party, a figurative painter whose work reaches into surrealism. —Elena Clavarino

Photo: © Siftung Arp. e V., Berlin, Rolandswerth/Artist Rights Society (ARS) New York/courtesy of Siftung Arp. e V., Berlin/Rolandswerth and Hauser & Wirth