Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1203909
ART + DECORATION 72 W omen rule the world in 2020, taking a cue from the 19th A m e n d m e n t ' s centennial — aka s u f f r a g e t t e s gaining the right to vote. In the art world, museums spin exhibitions around female artists and dedicate significant budgets to righting gender parity. In Houston, McClain Gallery devotes both buildings to a survey of works by Elaine Reichek, one that extends across five decades. Known as an artist's artist, Reichek is collected by the cognoscenti, including MoMA; Brooklyn Museum; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Whitney (where she's currently in the group show "Making Knowing: Craft in Art, 1950-2019). Her intelligent conceptual work melds feminism with an investigation of text and textiles spun into delicate, nuanced embroidered and sewn works on paper, linen, and organdy. At McClain, 1970s-era breakthrough thread pieces are presented in the west gallery. In the main gallery, Reichek's recent creations dialogue with authors across time — Vladimir Nabokov, Italo Calvino, Margaret Atwood, Anna Akhmatova — with literary passages rendered in block typefaces or cursive D esigner Ray Booth, a partner in McAlpine, takes an architectural approach to interiors that has garnered him recognition in Elle Decor, Veranda and Architectural Digest. His new collection for Dallas-based Arteriors showcases his love of ancient and modern forms and incorporates a passion for pairing artisan materials such as ceramic, wood, steel, iron, and stone. The 44-piece group includes eight lighting designs with an aged-bronze finish, a classically inspired bronze-metal Amphora vase, and mixed-media Mod Short vases that combine sculptural ceramic and oak forms. Furniture options keep it simple with the highly architectural Tuck bench and ottoman in steel, wood, and linen. Ray Booth Collection for Arteriors, $275 to $4,040, at Area, 3735 Westheimer Road, arteriors.com. Rebecca Sherman GRAPHOLOGY OF FEMINISM FORM AND FUNCTION letters painstakingly, obsessively hand- stitched. "Elaine Reichek: Between the Needle and the Book," through March 7, at McClain Gallery; mcclaingallery.com. Catherine D. Anspon "I t's Louise Nevelson meets Mike Kelley," collector Sandy Dow pronounces — and we agree. At Barbara Davis Gallery, Jason Yates' wall sculpture Some Place Else takes the tropes of childhood figurines (Mickey Mouse, Porky the Pig, a giant ice cream cone) and envelops them in matte-black pigment, creating a nostalgic statement about the American dream that's both beautiful and disquieting. The Los Angeles-based Yates, who grew up in Detroit, once served as studio assistant to the late Kelley; both share a dystopian outlook filtered through overlooked objects of American culture. $28,500, at Barbara Davis Gallery, through February 28, barbaradavisgallery.com. Catherine D. Anspon LONGING FOR AMERICANA COURTESY THE ARTIST AND BARBARA DAVIS GALLERY Jason Yates' Some Place Else, 2019, at Barbara Davis Gallery COURTESY THE ARTIST AND MCCLAIN GALLERY Elaine Reichek's Henceforth (Foucault), 2019, at McClain Gallery COURTESY THE ARTIST AND MCCLAIN GALLERY Elaine Reichek's The Fridge is Empty (Louise Bourgeois), 2019, at McClain Gallery Mod Short vases Ray Booth collection for Arteriors Ray Booth