Dawn To Decadence: A Solo Show Of Paintings By Annika Connor

While many in the art world flew South to Miami this week, the scene back in New York was still hopping as crowds gathered in Chelsea last night at Able Fine Art Gallery’s Dawn to Decadence reception for artist Annika Connor. Connor is a Brooklyn-based painter who works in the decadent aesthetic of a romantic. The exhibition features her latest watercolor and oil painting series that meditate on indulgence and psychoneurosis. Connor puts a fascinating spin on “beauty” via disenchantment in a world of mutated fantasy. The nostalgic aspiration to the materialistic and hedonistic life of the past allows a sort of spiritual contemplation to travel and escape out of the mundane.

Connor's idealistic images draw upon the anxieties and delirium associated with decadence. Her color-rich paintings bring the external stimuli of the artist, who is also an actor, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. When asked about the exhibition Connor said “the central theme of this show as I see it, is really the comparison between the ornateness and beauty of nature and the exuberant excess of of the past. I love how the curator Kate Bae juxtaposed the elaborate landscape paintings with my detailed interiors to illustrate this idea.”

Dawn to Decadence opened to the public on November 26th and is running through December 10th, 2014. Able Fine Art NY is located at 511 West 25th Street, Suite 607.

Who was there: Guests included Kate Bae, Annika Connor, Amisha Patel, Juying Qin, Lin Gao, Curtis Young, Matt Paco, Denise Woods, Samantha Barry, Gillian Morris, Clay Nielsen, Ann Marlowe, Henry Alcalay, Kim Le, Yina & Alan Moore, Britt Stone, Tom Flaherty, Andrew Wind, Sheela Aiyappasamy, Jun Ge, Karl Yeh, and Bunny Aisin Gioro.

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