RON GORCHOV


Being deeply engaged in the exploration of liberating ideas of form, Ron Gorchov has been working with shaped canvases since the late 1960's. His custom-fabricated, saddle-like stretchers avoid the clear edges of an ordinary canvas – contrary to the rigid format of the rectangle that dominated the medium of painting at that time – and offer  a novel investigation of space, scale and surface.

Opening the picture plane to the space in front of it and exposing their stretchers otherwise closely attached to the wall, the artist's works allow an unusual experience of depth. Diverging from the impression of a flat screen, they fuse ideas of painting and sculpture.

"Gorchov has his own peculiar and particular way of painting and it is precisely the efficacy of that fact that has allowed him to add something to painting that we can recognize as being at home in our time. Inevitably. He has situated himself within the history of the medium, re-reading, as might be expected, the saturated hues of Rothko or the stripes and zips of Newman, to ensure the continuity, centricity, and innovative power of abstract language. He has pushed the medium into a personal statement that we feel and recognize: liquid paint; radiant colour; the superposition of different layers; simple, gentle, somewhat perturbing shapes; lightness of touch; curved spaces; matte pastels; thick brushtrokes; monochromes; nuances; thin fabric; variation in size; subtlety."

Kevin Power, Shaping a changing time in Ron Gorchov. Where The Soul Hides, Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno, 2011

Image: Merope, 2017, oil on linen, 217 x 191,5 x 34.5 cm. Photo courtesy Cheim & Read, New York

Biography


VITA

1930

Born in Chicago


1947 - 1948

University of Mississippi, Oxford


1948 - 1950

Roosevelt College & Art Institute, Chicago


1950 - 1951

University of Illinois, Urbana


1959

Ingram Merrill Award


1975

National Endowment for the Arts Award for Painting

CAPS Award


1994

John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship Award for Painting


2010

Skowhegan Medal for Painting

Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant


2020

Died in New York

 

SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS

Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago

Denver Art Museum, Denver

Detroit Institute of Art, Detroit

Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Museum of Modern Art, New York

Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City

Whitney Museum of American Art, New York

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2019

At the Cusp of the 80s, Paintings 1979 – 1983
Cheim & Read, New York

Theogony according to Ron Gorchov
Thomas Brambilla

Modern Art, London


2018

Theogony According to Ron Gorchov
Thomas Brambilla, Bergamo

Galerie Max Hetzler, Berlin


2017

Maruani Mercier, Knokke  

Cheim & Read, New York


2016

Works from the 1970s
Vito Schnabel Projects, New York

Concord
Vito Schnabel Gallery, St. Moritz


2015

Recent Works
Thomas Brambilla, Bergamo

Ron Gorchov (curated by Vito Schnabel)
Sotheby’s  S|2, London   


2014

Serapis
Contemporary Art Museum, St.Louis


2013

39 Great Jones, New York

Galerie Forsblom, Helsinki

Monsieur X
Vito Schnabel Projects, New York

Recent Watercolors
Lesley Heller Workspace, New York


2012

Recent Paintings
Galerie Richard, Paris   

Ron Gorchov (curated by Phong Bui)
Cheim & Read, New York


2011

Ron Gorchov: Donde Se Occulta el Alma
Centro Atlantico de Arte Modern (CAAM), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria


2010

Recent Watercolors
George Lawson Gallery, San Francisco   


2009

Ron Gorchov and Alain Kirili
Galerie Richard, Paris


2008

Recent Paintings
Nicholas Robinson Gallery, New York


2006

Ron Gorchov - Double Trouble
MoMA PS1, Long Island City


2005

Vito Schnabel, New York   


1994

Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Ferndale


1993

Locks Gallery, Philadelphia


1992

Jack Tilton Gallery, New York


1990

Jack Tilton Gallery, New York


1985

Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Ferndale


1984

Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Ferndale


1983

Marlborough Gallery, New York


1981

Montana State University Fine Art Gallery, Bozeman


1980

Galerie AK, Frankfurt   

Hamilton Gallery, New York

Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York


1979

Entrance, 1971 - 1979, Second Installation
MoMA PS1, Long Island City

Hamilton Gallery, New York

Young Hoffman Gallery, Chicago


1978

Matrix Program
University Art Museum, New York

Galerie M, Bochum


1977

Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Ferndale


1976

Texas Gallery, Houston

Rooms
MoMA PS1, Long Island City


1975

Fischbach Gallery, New York


1972

Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse


1966

Recent Paintings
Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York


1963

Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York


1960

Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2019

Artist's choice: Amy Sillman – The Shape of Shape
The Museum of Modern Art, New York

Gazing into the void
Bjorn & Gundorph Gallery, Aarhus

The social environment
Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Penitenti, Venice

Flat Out: Drawing, 2000 – 2019
Mana Contemporary, New Jersey


2017

To bid or not to bid
Thomas Brambilla, Bergamo

The Horizontal
Cheim & Read, New York

The Colllectors Home
Avlskarl Gallery, Copenhagen


2016

Shapeshifters
Luhring Augustine Gallery, New York

Painting into Three Dimensions
Galerie Richard, New York

A quoi tient la beauté des étreintes
FRAC, Auvergne, Clermont Ferrand


2015

Thirty Nine Years
Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Ferndale

Works on Paper 2015
Philip Slein Gallery, Saint Louis

Intimacy in Discours: Reasonable and Unreasonable Sized Paintings
Mana Contemporary, New Jersey City

Der Beste Anfang
Thomas Brambilla, Bergamo


2014

Cruce de colecciones
Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno (CAAM), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

Funzione Continua
Thomas Brambilla, Bergamo

Green Circle, Black Diamond
Ratio 3, San Francisco

The Shaped Canvas, Revisited
Luxembourg & Dayan, New York


2013

Cuaderno De Bitácora 1. Obra Sobre Papel En La colleción Caam        
Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno (CAAM), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

On Painting
Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno (CAAM), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

39greatjones
Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich

Gallery Selections
Russell Browman Art Advisory, Chicago

Hors Frontières – Abstractions
Galerie Richard, Paris   

DSM-V
The Future Moynihan Station, Vito Schnabel, New York


2012

Painting Towards Three Dimensions
Galerie Richard, New York

Aufbruch. Malerei und realer Raum
Museum im Kulturspeicher, Würzburg;
Akademie der Künste, Berlin;
Museum Pfalzgalerie Kaiserslautern, Kaiserslautern

Image/abstraction/object
Russell Browman Art Advisory, Chicago

Little Languages/Coded Pictures (curated by Theresa Hackett & Michelle Weinberg)
Lesley Heller Workspace, New York

Brucennial 2012 – Harder. Betterer. Fasterer. Strongerer
Brucennial, New York

Post War American Art
David Klein Gallery, Birmingham


2011

Paper 2011
Janet Kurnatowski Gallery, New York

It's All Good!! Apocalypse Now
Sideshow Gallery, Brooklyn

Brooklyn Rail 10 Year Anniversary Silent Benefit Auction
Visual Arts Gallery, School of Visual Arts, New York


2010

THE BIENNIAL WINTER SALON 2010
Elga Wimmer PCC, New York

Fool's House
Columbia University, New York

Between Picture and Viewer: The Image in Contemporary Painting
Visual Arts Gallery, School of Visual Arts, New York

Territories, Left of Center (curated by Jeffrey Uslip)
The Luckman Gallery, California State University, Los Angeles

Wall to Wall
Daniel Weinberg Gallery, Los Angeles

who loves the sun
Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Ferndale

16 Artistes – Oeuvre sur papier
Galerie Richard, Paris

It's a Wonderful Tenth
Sideshow Gallery, New York

Winter Salon
Björn Ressle Gallery, New York


2009

More Mergers & Acquisitions
Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, Atlanta

Party at Chris's House (curated by Phong Bui)
Janet Kurnatowski Gallery, New York

Ron GORCHOV, Alan KIRILI – La célébration de la main
Galerie Richard, Paris

Triple Play (curated by Lilly Wei)
Lesley Heller Gallery, New York

NY Masters
Galerie Richard, Paris


2008

Invitational Exhibition of Visual Art
The American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York

Party at Phong's (curated by Chris Martin)
Janet Kurnatowski Gallery, New York

High Times, Hard Times. New York Painting 1967 -1975
ZKM – Zentrum für Kunst und medientechnologie Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe


2007

High Times, Hard Times. New York Painting 1967 – 1975
Neue Galerie Graz,, Universalmuseum Graz, Graz   

Tiempos intensos, tiempos dificiles – Pintura de Nueva York 1967 – 1975
Museo Tamayo, Mexico City


2006

Ron Gorchov, Judy Pfaff, John Torreano
Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Ferndale


2000

The First Fifty Years
Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York


1997

Roland Pease Collection
Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York

Salient Green
Susanne Hilberry Gallery, Birmingham


1996

PAPIER, Bestandsaufnahme XIII
Galerie M, Bochum

Epitaphs, Invitational Exhibition
Edward Thorp Gallery, New York


1995

Bestandsaufnahme XII
Galerie M, Bochum

47th Annual Purchase Exhibition
Edward Thorp Gallery, New York


1993

30th  Anniversary Exhibition (Benefit Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts)
Leo Castelli Gallery, New York

Paintings from the Permanent Collection
Museum of Modern Art, New York

The Return of the Cadavre Exquis
The Drawing Center, New York

Paintings from the Permanent Collection
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York


1992

Invitational (curated by Marjory Wellish)
John Good Gallery, New York


1991

Bestandsaufnahme VIII    
Galerie M, Bochum

Abstract Painting of the 90's
Andre Emerich Gallery, New York


1990

Clifford Still: A Dialogue
Phillip Briet Gallery, New York


1989

Small and Stellar
Ruth Siegel Gallery, New York

Urrealism (curated by Alan Jones)
Paul Kasmin Gallery, New York


1986

Inspiration by Nature
Jack Tilton Gallery, New York


1985

American Abstract Painting 1960 – 1980
Margo Leavin Gallery, Los Angeles

Gallery Artists
Malborough Gallery, New York


1984

Eccentric Images
Margo Leavin Gallery, Los Angeles


1983

Language, Drama, Source 6 Vision
New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York


1979

The 1970s: New American Painting
New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York


1977

Early Work By Five Contemporary Artists
New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York

Whitney Biennial 1977
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York


1976

Rooms
MoMA PS1, New York

Approaching Painting, Part Three
Hallwalls at The Church, Buffalo


1975

Whitney Biennial 1975
Whitney Museum of Contemporary Art, New York

Collection
CAC – Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati


1961

Young America 1960
CAC – Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Vito Schnabel Projects (Ed.): Ron Gorchov: Works from the 1970s, New York 2017

Sotheby’s S|2 London (Ed.): Ron Gorchov, London 2015

Cheim & Read (Ed.): Ron Gorchov, New York 2012

Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno (Ed.): Ron Gorchov: Donde Se Oculta el Alma (Where The Soul Hides), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 2011

Nicholas Robinson Gallery (Ed.): Ron Gorchov: Recent Paintings, New York 2008

Vito Schnabel (Ed.): Ron Gorchov, New York 2005

Jack Tilton Gallery (Ed.): It’s Not What You’re Doing..., New York 1990

Publications


Ron Gorchov

Exhibition Poster
2018

€ 20.00

Selected Press


Samizdat April 2018

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