Richard Anuszkiewicz: “Recent Paintings and Sculpture” is currently running at the Eire Art Museum, 411 State Street, Eire PA 16501 (USA).  The exhibition is housed in the main gallery and runs from July 14th through to November 25th 2012.

Anuszkiewicz was born in Eire and studied art at the Eire Technical High School under Joseph Plavcan.  Although now living in Englewood, N.J.,  Anuskiewicz, 82, maintains a strong connection with his home town.

If you are anywhere near Eire then I would strongly recommend that you go to see the work of one of the true Op Art pioneers.  Richard Anuszkiewicz’s works are held in museum collections all over the world, and he remains to this day one of America’s most revered painters.

Hours
Closed on Mondays
Tuesday – Thursday, 11 am to 5 pm
Friday, 11 am to 9 pm
Saturday, 11 am to 5 pm
Sunday, 1 pm to 5 pm

Admission
Members – Free
Adults – $7
Seniors Citizens & Students – $5
Children under 5 – Free

“When the brilliant colors and geometric precision of Op Art appeared on the art scene in the mid-1960s, Erie native Richard Anuszkiewicz was the movement’s foremost American painter. His artwork explores the relationship between color and space, creating art that subtly challenges the audience’s visual perceptions. Over the years, Anuszkiewicz’s art has evolved, but he remains committed to the principles of mathematics, architecture and color theory that have always been essential to his work.

This exhibit draws from Anuszkiewicz’s recent works and shows his progression from paintings to sculpture from the 1980s to present. “I sometimes refer to my painting as architectural, because I work out my plan, I work out my idea, and then I go about constructing the painting,” Anuszkiewicz said of his work in the 1970s. At this time he began to break out of a strictly rectangular format, creating knot-shaped and plus-sign shaped works, leading him to paint on shaped canvases. Shaped canvases gave way to painted wood, and eventually steel, constructions. Many of these works bear the title “Translumina,” and in these works, he begins to concern himself more with illusions of transparency rather than color transfer. As this series developed, a form of sculpture emerged that resembles colored drawings in the air—transparent intersecting boxes suggesting forms similar to his shaped canvases.”

‘Courting Colour‘, a new exhibition of the works of Op and Abstract Artist Barrie Cook, opens at the Newman Street Gallery (London) on 11th July 2012 and runs through to August 4th 2012 [UPDATE – exhibition now open until 15th September 2012].  Gallery opening hours are Monday to Saturday 10am to 6pm.  Entrance to the exhibition is free.  The exhibition is curated by Sandra Higgins.

Newman Street Gallery
Lower ground, 18 Newman Street, London, W1T 1PE
(Below the newly opened space ‘The Piper Gallery’)

“Barrie Cook has been working in form and colour for over 60 years. He is masterly at combining vivid pigments many times in juxtaposition with dynamic forms applied to the canvas using his unique semi-industrial spray gun process. Through this method, he achieves an extraordinary high degree of subtlety creating the illusion of movement and mystery.

Cook’s gradated bands play tricks on the eye – it is impossible to tell where the sprayed bars begin or end. In his larger paintings, the viewer is drawn into a physical space dominated by the work. His work has been described as being ‘rhythmic’, ‘pulsating’ and ‘sonorous’.

‘Painting is a way of thinking. Each picture requires its own special logic. I use paintings to hint at, or make manifest, the unseen and the intangible. I see them as an aid to contemplation and meditation.’ – Barrie Cook”

If you are in London during this period, I would highly recommend you take the opportunity to see the works of this talented and unique Op Artist.

The Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes is currently hosting an exhibition titled ‘Real / Virtual’ showcasing Argentinian Kinetic Art from the 1950s through to the 1970s.  The exhibition runs from the 14th June 2012 through to the 19th August 2012.  Hours are Tuesday to Friday 12.30 to 8.30pm, Saturday and Sunday 9.30 am to 8.30pm.  Entrance to the exhibition is free.

The exhibition includes works from the Museum’s own collection acquired at the time the movement was in full flow in addition to pieces from private collections and other institutions.  The works on display date from the late 1950s through to the early 1970s.  The exhibition is curated by Maria Jose Herrera, head of the Research at the museum.

You can find out more about the exhibition here.  There is a good article about the exhibition here (in Spanish).

Thanks to Tony for pointing this out to me.

A new Bridget Riley Exhibition is opening in The Diss Corn Hall Gallery in Diss (near Norwich, England).  The exhibition focusses on Riley’s screenprints from the past 10 years (in fact 2004-2011) and includes her ‘Rose Rose‘ piece commissioned for the Olympics.

The exhibition runs from Friday 8th June through to Saturday 30th June.  Hours are 11am to 4pm.  Entrance is free.  There is also an evening viewing on Wednesday 13 June between 6 and 7.45pm.

The exhibition has been organised in conjunction with the Karsten Schubert Gallery and David Case Fine Art.

You can find out more about it on the Diss Corn Hall website.

A new Bridget Riley exhibition ‘Bridget Riley: Works 1960 – 1966’ opened today in London.  The exhibition is split between the Hazlitt Holland-Hibbert Gallery, 38 Bury Street, St James’s, London and Karsten Schubert Gallery (Karsten Schubert is Bridget Riley’s agent), 5-8 Lower John Street, Golden Square, London.

The exhibition concentrates on the ‘black and white’ period from 1960-66 which produced some of Riley’s most famous works.  A total of 45 works are on display from both private and public collections including the hugely important and influential work ‘Movement in Squares’.

Movement in Squares – Bridget Riley

Entrance to the exhibition is free.  It runs from 23 May 2012 until 13 July 2012.  If you have even a passing interest in Op Art (which I’m assuming you do since you’re on the site) and live anywhere near London then this is an exhibition you should not miss.

You can find out more about the exhibition here.

Update:

The Telegraph have published a very positive review of the exhibition here.