Sunday, February 15, 2026

Lew Allen Galleries new artist featured this week: Brian Rutenberg applies paint in slabs to create his abstract paintings

Brian Rutenberg, Phlox 3, 2016, oil on linen, 82 x 60 in

For more than four decades, Brian Rutenberg has made lush paintings that enthusiastically embrace the beauty of nature. Elegant abstract orchestrations of color, line, and space create a distinctive method of compressing rich color and form into complex landscape paintings, imbuing material reality with a deep resonance of place. Rutenberg’s intention in his work is “sustained meditations on the sheer transformative power of looking.”

Phlox 3 asserts the sheer lusciousness of paint and color, an example of how Rutenberg proudly declares a “deep love for excess; moderation simply isn’t in my vocabulary.” The painting demonstrates a physical immediacy and immersion, a manner that integrates the visceral and the intellectual.

BEN ARONSON

Chicago River

View more by artist

HERMAN MARIL

Music in the Stuido

View more by artist

Ben Aronson, Chicago River (detail), 2017, oil on panel, 38 x 52.5

Herman Maril, Music in the Studio (detail), 1985, oil on canvas, 30 x 24 in

LewAllen Galleries

1613 Paseo de Peralta Santa Fe, NM 87501

505.988.3250

Mon - Fri 10 - 6 / Sat 10 - 5

Inquire

#lewallengalleries#brianrutenbergartists#fineartmagazine#fineartmagazineblog.blogspot

#sunstormfineartmagazine#sunstormfineartmagazine.com

Fremin Gallery welcomes New Artists: Gary James McQueen, Pancho Luna, Lauren Camara, and Rodrigo Franzao.

Fremin is delighted to welcome several new artists whose works further enriches our gallery program. We look forward to presenting their pieces alongside our usual artists at upcoming art fairs as well as in forthcoming exhibitions where we hope to have the pleasure of welcoming you.

For more informations, contact us at info@fremingallery.com.

Gary James McQueen

Gary James McQueen was first introduced to the fashion industry by his late uncle Alexander McQueen, who mentored and inspired him to be the artist he is today. As head textile designer for Alexander McQueen Men’s Ready to Wear collections, the artist developed a niche in optical-illusion textile design, constantly pushing himself and the boundaries of what could be achieved using a 3D canvas as the basis. He worked alongside his uncle up until his passing in 2010 and was trusted with many personal projects, including the lenticular portrait that has become iconic for its use on the cover of the catalogue accompanying “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty,” the 2011 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Today, Gary James McQueen combines a familial inheritance with his own artistic integrity to explore an innate dexterity with visual storytelling.

McQueen's work will be on display at the upcoming Hamptons Fine Art Fair in July followed by a solo exhibition at Fremin Gallery on July 16th.

Pancho Luna

Contemporary Argentinian artist Pancho Luna is gaining international attention for his striking sculptural works that transform the familiar form of the book into luminous objects crafted from glass and resin. Blending traditional symbolism with modern materials, Luna’s creations challenge viewers to reconsider the meaning of knowledge, memory, and permanence in the digital age.

Luna’s sculptures preserve the recognizable silhouette of books while reimagining their physical presence. Cast in translucent resin and hand-worked glass, each piece captures light in ways that evoke fragility, depth, and quiet introspection. The works appear both solid and ethereal — a visual paradox that has become a defining characteristic of the artist’s style. Much like those volumes he could not yet read, the seductive appeal of these sculptures is, at least at first, almost entirely aesthetic. The clear, chromatically lined blocks are stacked, aligned, and tilted, setting slivers of fine lines and bright colors in staccato rhythms that flicker and change as the viewer moves across and around, peers inside and pulls away again. Their capturing and refracting of ambient light in blended, geometrical abstraction recalls the materialism of Light & Space artists like Vasa or Larry Bell. Ultimately, these works reflect his identity as a sculptor rather than a writer.

Pancho first solo exhibition with Fremin Gallery will be held on April 23rd.

Lauren Camara

Lauren Camara is a Bronx-based, self-taught artist and graphic designer who creates layered portraits made entirely from carefully cut paper. Her work grows out of everyday encounters and quiet, often overlooked moments, turning them into colorful visual stories that feel both personal and familiar. She is drawn to the small, meaningful details that shape people’s lives, and her portraits reflect the idea that even simple moments can hold deep emotion and significance.

Camara works from photographs of her subjects, building each portrait from her large and ever-growing collection of papers. Color and material are at the heart of her process where every piece of paper is chosen to reflect the personality, energy, and story of the person she is depicting. She spends hours cutting, arranging, and layering, allowing the slow, hands-on process to guide the final image. During this time, she focuses closely on the individual, thinking about their presence and character, so that the finished portrait feels thoughtful and connected rather than just visual.

Through this detailed and time-intensive method, Camara creates portraits that go beyond simple likeness, capturing a sense of feeling and human connection. She has described her use of paper as both symbolic and metaphorical, where the layering process reflects the many experiences and stories that shape a person.
Camara speaks about how her own life experiences shape the way she approaches portraiture. Having lived a full and varied life, she brings a sense of understanding and empathy to the people she represents.That lived awareness becomes part of the work itself, guiding her choices and strengthening the sense of connection that runs through each portrait.

Camara's work will be on view in our upcoming group exhibition, "True Beauty" on June 4th.

Rodrigo Franzão

Rodrigo Franzão born 1982 in Sao Paulo, is a contemporary Brazilian artist based in New Orleans, whose work explores the relationship between form, texture, and color. Innovative in his exploration of textile mixed media, and with a background in Literature, Arts, and Art History, Franzao’s work examines the dynamic between material, texture, and color while maintaining environmental responsibility. Using FSC-certified German paper and acrylic paints, his work features layers of folded paper and textures, creating a dynamic, immersive experience with a maintained focus on sustainability.

Franzão explains his work by saying, “My work is a dialogue between materiality, light, and form, where I engage with the inherent properties of sustainable, FSC-certified German paper and acrylic paints to explore the delicate tension between nature and creation”.

Each piece is composed of meticulously folded pieces of paper layered and composed together to establish depth, texture, and movement, creating a kinetic energy within the static pieces. This dimension is created by the light and shadow interplaying with the physicality of the paper, activating the piece as a visual experience. Then a monochromatic gradient is introduced with the application of acrylic paint. Simulating the nuanced flow of natural light across the canvas, dark to light transitions all culminate in a concentrated white, contemplating cycles of change and renewal.

He says, “I seek to create a visual experience where the audience is invited to consider not only the composition but also the ephemeral nature of light itself”.

A leader in his medium, Franzão is the founder of Museu Têxtil, a virtual museum, and InTheArts, an art magazine that covers textile and mixed media practices. His other projects including Threads of Tomorrow (2024) and Textile Expressions (2023), continue to shape the future of contemporary textile art, reinforcing his status as an influential figure in the global art scene. His work forces viewers to reflect on the relationship between nature, art, and society, while considering fragility and the passage of time.

Franzão says, “Art should not only resonate in the present moment but contribute to a future in which beauty and responsibility coexist. In this way, my work becomes a celebration of balance—between art and environment, form and formlessness, permanence and impermanence”