New Canaan's Glass House exhibits a series of paintings

The Glass House  located on 199 Elm Street in New Canaan proudly presents Julian Schnabel: "Paintings that I hope Philip and David would like," an intimate survey showcasing Julian Schnabel's prolific painting career. Over the course of the exhibition period, the Painting Gallery panels will rotate three times to present paintings selected by the artist. Each rotation will feature six works from different periods of the artist's career.

Wax Paintings from the 1970s will be on view from May 1st to June 5th. Gathered from private collections, this rotation offers a glimpse into Schnabel's early investigations into painting. The six works on display at the Glass House were all created before his first solo exhibition in New York City at Mary Boone Gallery in 1979. These works reveal themes that permeate throughout the artist's oeuvre. Upon close examination, the pearlescent layers of wax and modeling paste reveal the hand of the artist, who was building up the surface to accept his own version of a new painted language. Schnabel also notched into the surface of his paintings and built out of the surface to further illustrate the notion of time passing as it does. The titles of several of these early works - Accattone, Procession (for Jean Vigo), Shoeshine (for Vittorio de Sica) indicate a strong interest in European cinema, hinting at the artist's future development as a filmmaker.

The second rotation, Paintings after 2000, on view from June 8th to July 10th, feature works from the artist's collection from different series: Nothing Paintings, Weather Paintings and Landscape Paintings. The Nothing Paintings were made on images printed on polyester. The Landscape Paintings were made on found materials bought in Mexico. Reminiscent of aerial photography, the Weather Paintings are mysterious images photographically printed as an aerial view of the land, creating a disorienting sense of sight so that the viewer feels suspended above rather than being on the ground.

The third and last rotation, Paintings from the 1980s and 1990s, feature works from the Glass House's Permanent Collection. Collected by both Philip Johnson and David Whitney, these works are on view from July 13th to August 14th.

Julian Schnabel: "Paintings I hope Philip and David would like" was organized by Irene Shum, Curator and Collections Manager. Shum states, "After Frank Stella, Julian Schnabel is the most represented artist in the collection, so it was important for the Glass House to present Julian's work more fully. Putting the works in the Glass House Collection within the context of his career allows the public to develop a deeper appreciation of both the artist and the collection. The artist's creative process is revealed." Paintings were installed by the Artist.