Bradwolff & Partners is delighted to present the exhibition 'Observations on Society'. The exhibition runs until 6 July. This is the second exhibition of 'In Dialogue', a series of duo exhibitions running throughout 2024 that will showcase inspiring interactions between pairs of contemporary artists whose artistic paths intersect and intensify one another in unexpected ways.??For this second instalment in the series, conceptual artists Greg Colson and Meschac Gaba show their sociological, economic and political reflections on society. Differing in background and journey, they find common ground in their use of significant symbols from contemporary culture to shape their critical perspectives. ??American artist Greg Colson uses imagery that is easily accessible or instantly recognisable and transforms it into his own unique vision. Observing society in an approachable and unpretentious manner, his works offer an aerial view exposing our fears, spending habits and most pressing social issues. Colson catalogues significant economic and social topics, using standardised systems such as pie charts or maps which he renders with typefaces or symbols typically found in public signage. ??Meschac Gaba, who hails from Benin (Africa) and partly works in the Netherlands, also employs familiar and relatable objects in his art, such as flags, sugar, decommissioned coins, paper currency and discarded clothing. In doing so, Gaba poses critical questions about the global economy and the lack of social and economic justice. With his cross-cultural context, he challenges notions of identity and deliberately blurs the lines between art, museums and everyday life. His 'Museum of Contemporary African Art' forms an iconic statement that not only requests but demands the viewer's engagement. Gaba's work is both playful and probing, navigating between the personal and the political, the artistic and the ordinary.??While Colson delves into the paradoxes of analytics within Western systems, Gaba engages in a multiplex dialogue across cultures. Shown together, their work is an invitation for visitors to engage in wider conversations about the subtleties of our social and cultural perceptions.??Greg Colson (born 1956, Seattle, USA) lives and works in Los Angeles. His art has been featured in over 40 international exhibitions, including at Sperone Westwater (New York), Konrad Fischer Gallery (Dusseldorf, Germany), Kunsthalle Lophem (Bruges, Belgium), Gian Enzo Sperone (Rome, Italy), Sprovieri (London, England), and Thomas Park Gallery (Seoul, South Korea) and is part of museum collections such as the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Modern Art (New York, USA), Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (Washington, D.C., USA), Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles, USA), and the Getty Research Institute (Los Angeles, USA).??Meschac Gaba (born 1961, Cotonou, Benin) lives and works in Rotterdam and Cotonou. He studied at the Rijksacademie voor Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam in 1996-1997. Gaba's most emblematic work, 'Museum of Contemporary African Art', was installed in various European institutions, starting at the Rijksmuseum Leiden. Over five years, Gaba created 12 rooms of a nomadic museum, culminating with 'Humanist Space' during dOCUMENTA 11 in 2002. His work has also been displayed at the Nobel Peace Center, Oslo (2006), and The Tate Modern, London (2005).??Back Room Special: "to be" - a parallel exhibition at Bradwolff & Partners??In the back room of Bradwolff & Partners, various text-based works are on display. The works of Greg Colson, featured in the "Observations on Society" exhibition, inspired B & P to explore the relationship between text, word, and image in visual art and the societal observations that arise from it. The small yet impactful text piece "to be" by herman de vries, which also lends its title to the parallel exhibition in this space, demonstrates the visual power of the word within the image. This work reflects both on the pieces by Greg Colson and Meschac Gaba and on the specially selected text works by artists such as Tim Ayres, Hanne Darboven, Jenny Holzer, Gracia Khouw, Joseph Kosuth, Ferdinand Kriwett, Kevin Mancera, Joanneke Meester, Matt Mullican, Marc Nagtzaam, Andrei Roiter, Ed Ruscha, David Tremlett, herman de vries, and Lawrence Weiner.??For several decades, these artists have explored and applied the power of the word to express their personal and societal visions.

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