Tonight was the opening reception for Todd James’ first solo show in New York at the Gering & López Gallery on 5th Ave. It was a packed opening, full of the who’s who of the street art  and streetwear worlds. Pardon that this recap doesn’t  focus on the crowd in attendance; I was mostly concerned with the work on the wall.

The show featured all new work that varied from being very modest in size, to impressively large scale. Most of the work was done with graphite and gouache, but there were also a few smaller scale acrylic paintings in the mix. Were my pockets just a little deeper, I would have laid claim to a few of the pieces, because truth be told, there were a number of works that were very fairly priced. The perfect cherry popper for anyone looking to start collecting art seriously.

The show itself was hung in a rough and tumble way, with many of the pieces hung askew with plastic tacks directly through the paper and into the wall on some pieces. Perhaps this was a little slice of rebellion at having the show in a 5th ave gallery, but I think that in doing so, the presentation did not do the artwork any favors. But all of that was pretty easily forgotten because the work itself was fantastic.

Todd James never ceases to amaze me. Make My Burden Lighter was very much a middle ground between his tighter, cleaner style, which brought him gallery fame in the early part of the 2000s, and the much looser, sketchier style he’s been using for the past few years. The two coming together made for a perfect dynamic, fully utilizing James’ mastery at color, characters, and composition.

The works were chock-full of his iconic female characters and his distinct style of anthropomorphism, this time with military vehicles and WMDs. I was particularly taken by the introduction of the skull-headed sailor boy (in Donald Duck-esque attire), who was a repeated motif in many of the pieces.

I also really loved this Leatherman Grimace. Too bad he only made this one-off appearance at the show. Make My Burden Lighter will run until February 20th, and I can’t recommend enough that if you’re in the city, check it out. Also check out a few more images from the show after the break.

Todd James: Make My Burden Lighter
Gering & López Gallery
730 Fifth Avenue
Between 56th and 57th Streets
New York, NY

- My Pal the Crook