Ella KruglyanskayasCriminal Stickup in Yellow(2012) is the first figurative paintingexhibited at collectorspace. This large, colorful, visually overpowering painting depicts a vicious quarrel between two fashionable, highly feminine figures, where the arguments nature is at odds with the characters look. Thesomehow chauvinistic tone of one of the women is manifest in hermenacingshadow that resembles a gangster holding a gun hip-high. The other woman, underneath the startled, innocent expression on her face, is charged with a vile attitude.The work unmercifully caricaturizes the two-facedness, cruelty, and backbiting that inflict women of supposedly sophisticated upper-echelons of our society.
Kruglyanskayaspainting is fresh from the artists first solo show at a commercial gallery in New York City. The significance ofthis work,like all contemporary art, has to be judged over time. It is, however, the type of work that demonstrates the ability of its collector to spot fresh takes in a medium with a long history. Taking this painting as the starting point of discussion, collectorspace presents the Eisenberg Collection that includes many master-pieces of contemporary art, which were, at the time of their acquisitions, merely strong works by promising young artists. Over the past 25 years, Martin and Rebecca Eisenberghave built a noteworthy collection of primarily painting and sculpture by recognizing young talents early, and supporting their careers.
Martin and Rebecca Eisenberg will be in Istanbul on Tuesday, October 16th for a conversation with artist and scholar Can Altay to discuss their approach to collecting art. For more information, please visit collectorspace.org.
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New York-based artist Ella Kruglyanskaya (b. 1978, Riga) holds a BFA from Cooper Union and an MFA in Painting from the Yale School of Art.Kruglyanskaya’s solo debut in New York was at White Columns in 2011,followed by an exhibition at Gavin Brown’s enterprise earlier this year.In 2011, her work was displayed in the renowned windows of the Barneys New York.In 20092010, the artist took part in the Artist in Residence studio program at the Henry Street Settlement/Abrons Art Center, New York.
Martin and Rebecca Eisenberg are Westchester County-based collectors of contemporary art, and supporters of various public art institutions in and around New York City. Their collection was subject of an exhibition at CCS Bard Hessel Museum of Art in 2010 curated by Matthew Higgs and titled At Home/Not at Home. A book with the same title was published to accompany the exhibition.
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