Walter Robinson, Born 1950, USA. Candles, 2018, Acrylic on Canvas, 72” x 60”

In 2006, artist-slash-art critic Walter Robinson wrote “Rocky Mountain High,” an extensive piece for Artnet about the city of Denver’s growing contemporary art scene. Flying nearly cross-country from New York to what was still known as a “cow town,” Robinson showed a lot of love and generosity toward the community’s flourishing museums, art districts, and experimental energy. In his notes about Dikeou Collection, he stated that the artwork is “pleasantly underground,” and nearly a decade later Walter’s paintings of spa candles has joined the ranks of our pleasantly underground crew forever. 

Walter Robinson, Born 1950, USA. Spa Candles, 2018, Acrylic on Canvas, 36” x 36”

Walter’s candle paintings in Dikeou Collection radiate tranquility, but their true meaning is more sensual and worldly. In a 2022 zingchat interview he revealed, “All my work is about desire. My candles are carnal, not spiritual. They’re stock images that Asian massage parlors use to set the tone in their ads. They’re about the senses, about touch.” Other subjects commonly portrayed in his work - money, women, fast food, cigarettes, alcohol - offer more apparent depictions of the kind of carnal desire he describes, while the candles are desire’s smokescreen. The viewer wants to assume the candles are aspirational; that they are devotional, spiritual, and evoke purity and wellness. But they’re secretly the least innocent players at the party. The candles provide the atmosphere while indulging in a late-night binge, or a heady studio session. Because, after all, “Painting in the dark gives the best art effects.” (Walter Robinson, 1950-2025).

- Hayley Richardson

International delights, a domestic wonderland, and a life held in dear memory . . . A quick snapshot of what Dikeou Collection artists have been up to over the past month, and what to look forward to next month.

Walter Robinson in 1985. Timothy Greenfield-Sanders (NYT)

All of us at Dikeou Collection and zingmagazine mourn the loss of our longtime friend and supporter, Walter Robinson (1950-2025). We send our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and loved ones.

Lisa Kereszi

Lisa Kereszi curated an exhibition of vintage photographs from her private collection for The Custom House Maritime Museum, which will run in concordance with a second show of her own photography. Both exhibitions open March 1 with a reception from 3-6pm. Kereszi’s work will also be on view in “Of Land and Place: A Juried Exhibition” at Vermont Center for Photography, March 7 through April 27, and in “Hill Blocks View: Coming Together when Things Fall Apart” opening March 8 at Creative Arts Workshop, CT.

@smilersnyc

Lizzi Bougatsos will exhibit with Nick Waplington in “Before the Clean-Up” opening March 6 at Smilers NYC.

Devon Dikeou, photographed by Lisa Kereszi

Devon Dikeou, in collaboration with fellow resident Julia Rose Katz, will present a Shop Talk at The American Academy in Rome on March 31.

Anicka Yi, Radial Sensation, 2023, 50 x 27 x 27 in, PMMA optical fiber, LEDs, silicone, acrylic, epoxy, aluminum, stainless steel, steel, brass, motors and microcontrollers. anickayistudio.biz

Anicka Yi’s exhibition “There Exists Another Evolution, But In This One,” originally shown at Leeum Museum of Art, will travel to UCCA Beijing, opening March 22.

Wade Guyton,Untitled, 2023, Epson UltraChrome HDX inkjet on linen, 84 x 69 inches (213.4 x 175.3 cm), Hartland & Mackie / Labora Collection

Work by Wade Guyton is on view in “Double Vision: The Rachofsky Collection and the Hartland & Mackie/Labora Collection” at the newly opened Warehouse in Dallas, TX. Work by Anicka Yi is also on exhibit.

Marcel Dzama All youth came out to play and no one could get ahead of us, 2019, Gouache, ink and graphite on paper, 97.2 x 126.4 cm 108.9 x 135.6 x 4.4 cm (framed) © Marcel Dzama Courtesy of the artist and David Zwirner

Marcel’s Dzama’s solo exhibition, “Dancing with the Moon,” opens at Pera Museum in Istanbul on March 20.

@__sarah__staton__, @yasmine.helou, @adhesivocontemporary

Work by Sarah Staton is on view in “Small Talk” at Adhesive Contemporary in Mexico City.

Tracy Nakayama at Armory Arts

Tracy Nakayama is a member of teaching staff at Armory Arts in Los Angeles where she leads workshops in drawing as meditation, Hawaiian floral art, design & printmaking, watercolor, and Itajime Shibori Dyeing. Check out her schedule of classes here :)

Ester Partegàs, Building Blocks, 2025; banner, 396 x 96 in, installed at the Center for Art Research, University of Oregon, Eugene

Ester Partegàs recently served as Visiting Artist at the University of Oregon at Eugene. Her work “Building Blocks” is on view near campus at 510 Oak Street through April 2025.

Giasco Bertoli, Forms of Happiness at Delpire & Co, Paris, 2025

Work by Giasco Bertoli is on view in “Forms of Happiness” at Delpire & Co in Paris through March 22.

Space Q, Copenhagen

Olav Westphalen recently participated in a three-day program about art, life, and the body at Space Q in Copenhagen.

The plant-filled atrium at the center of Vik Muniz and Malu Barretto’s studio building in Salvador, Brazil, which they designed with architect Brenda Bello and landscape designer Alex Sá. Photo by Ricardo Labougle for Elle Decor

Vik Muniz’ stunning Brazilian home was featured in Elle Decor

Gallery chats, artist publications, and shows on the road. . . A quick snapshot of what Dikeou Collection artists have been up to over the past month, and what to look forward to next month.

Chris Johanson, Ants, published by Nieves, 2025.

Chris Johanson has a new publication, Ants, available through Altman Siegel Gallery in San Francisco. Johanson’s work was also featured prominently in ASG’s booth at the recent FOG Design + Art Fair.

Ester Partegàs, knead, penetrate, let go (cat spaceship donut), 2024 from STEADY, April 17–September 8,2024, Ballroom Marfa. Courtesy the artist and Ballroom Marfa. Photo by Heather Rasmussen.

Ester Partegàs and Michelle Lopez’s exhibition, STEADY, originally exhibited at Ballroom Marfa, has traveled and recently opened at CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Art. Partegàs will be in conversation with Stephen Lichty on February 8.

Giasco Bertoli, Roses Tatoués No. 22, published by deplore & co, 2025.

Giasco Bertoli published Roses Tatouées No. 22 with Delpire & Co. on January 23.

www.genesdispensary.ca/next

Joshua Abelow will exhibit Gene’s Gold at Gene’s Dispensary in Los Angeles February 1-March 8.

Sebastiaan Bremer, Sous Bois, 2023, relief/screenprint, 27.75" x 21.5"

Sebastiaan Bremer’s three-print series of silkscreens, which he has called “guilty landscapes,” have been acquired by the National Gallery of Art’s print collection.

Anya Kielar, Witchtress, 2024, Acrylic on cotton fabric, 45″ x 38″

Work by Anya Kielar is on view at Mindy Solomon Gallery in Miami through February 15.

Marcel Dzama, self-portrait with artwork Drawing on a revolution, mural painting located in Spain at La Casa Encendida, Madrid, acrylic paint, approximate size 4.57 × 6.1 metres. Courtesy the artist.

Marcel Dzama was featured in the January 2025 issue of Border Crossings, where he discussed his experience of the “Francis Picabia: Femmes” exhibition at Michael Werner Gallery.

Lizzi Bougatsos will perform with her band I.U.D. at Union Pool on February 7.

Johannes VanDerBeek, Mooner, 2025, Museum board, aqua resin, silver leaf, ink, 18 x 9 x 7 inches (45.7 x 22.9 x 17.8 cm)

Work by Johannes Vanderbeek is on view at Halsey McKay Gallery through February 17.

Work by Lucky Debellevue is on view at Stokker Jaeger in Amsterdam through March 16.

Patricia Cronin, The First Democracy, installed at The NED, Washington D.C.

Patricia Cronin was commissioned to design the wallpaper for the recently opened NED Club in Washington D.C.

Simon Bill, Dover

Simon Bill released a new book, Dover, about “the value of this well-known but neglected and widely misunderstood town” in England. He has also been giving informative and personal walking tours throughout the town.

Agathe Snow, Fish Net and Toe Jam Collage, mushroom paper, junk mail, tattoo inks, colored sharpie, psylocibin spores, psylocibin photocopies, 19” x 19”, 2024

Work by Agathe Snow is on view in “100 East End Artists: 1 Year Anniversary Show” at North Fork Art Collective through February.

A life of love letters, festival sculptures, and years in retrospect. . . A quick snapshot of what Dikeou Collection artists have been up to over the past month, and what to look forward to next month.

Brooklyn ARTery's Uncivilized Festival, @thebrooklynartery

Sculptures by Johannes Vanderbeek will be exhibited during Uncivilized Festival at The Brooklyn ARTery on January 5.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS The new Royal Art Lodge exhibit at the School of Art gallery at the University of Manitoba on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. For Martin Zeilig story. Winnipeg Free Press 2024

The University of Manitoba is currently showing an extensive exhibition of works by Royal Art Lodge through January 17.

Drue Langlois photo, The Dudes of Hazmat, created by Drue Langlois.

Speaking of RAL, Winnipeg Free Press profiled former member Drue Langlois and his success as a popular indie cartoon animator. Check out his popular series Dudes of Hazmat on YouTube.

Sarah Staton, Gertrude Stein

Did you know Sarah Staton was the first artist to exhibit work at the original Soho House in London? As the global private member’s club celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2025, we can thank Staton for being the harbinger of its ever-growing art collection.

Jonathan Horowitz' Self-Portrait in "Mirror #1" installed at his and Rob Pruitt's aPalm Springs home. Photo: Stephen Kent Johnson

Work by Jonathan Horowitz was spotted in recent spread from Architectural Digest.

Wade Guyton and Tomohiro Masuda. Photo by Tokyo Art Beat

Wade Guyton was interviewed by curator Tomohiro Masuda about his current exhibition at Espace Louis Vuitton Tokyo, on view through March 16.

Margaret Lee in her studio. photo and pictured artwork by Lee

Margaret Lee’s April 2024 Cultured Mag article was named as one of the pub’s top profile of 2024. Revisit it here.

Photographs that the artist Joe Brainard included in a 1961 letter. Credit: E.G. Schempf

Joe Brainard’s collected love letters, “Love Joe,” was recently reviewed in The New York Times. Some of those letters can now be read on The Dirtyverse.

www.839gallery.com

Joshua Smith’s gallery, 839, will open a new show featuring Tran Truong on January 11.

Artful cocktails, holiday trinkets, and goddess vibes . . . A quick snapshot of what Dikeou Collection artists have been up to over the past month, and what to look forward to next month.

Anya Kielar, Sand Face #2, 2010, Masonite board, mixed media, paint, sand, dimensions variable

Work by Anya Kielar will be exhibited by Rachel Uffner Gallery at Art Basel Miami Beach through December 8.

Juan Gomez, Figure and Landscape, 2024, Oil on Linen, 36"x48"

Work by Juan Gomez will be exhibited by James Fuentes at Art Basel Miami Beach through December 8.

Sarah Staton, My Goddess Vibes

Sarah Staton’s new book, My Goddess Vibes, launches at Pipeline Projects in London on December 7. Work by Sarah will be on view in Fresh Window: The Art of Display & Display of Art at Tinguely Museum December 4-May 11, 2025.

Anicka Yi, Each Branch Of Coral Holds Up The Light Of The Moon, 2024, single-channel video. Courtesy: the artist, Leeum Museum of Art, Gladstone Gallery © Anicka Yi; photograph: Andrea Rossetti

Anicka Yi’s solo exhibition at Leeum Museum, on view through December 29, was recently reviewed in Frieze Magazine.

Dzama delivers an artist talk Saturday at the Plug In Institute of Contemporary Art for opening of Ghosts of Canoe Lake; MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS

Marcel Dzama’s Canadian traveling solo exhibition, Ghosts of Canoe Lake, finally hit his hometown of Winnipeg and is now on view at Plug In Institute of Contemporary Art. Check out recent press coverage about the show from New York Public Radio, Winnipeg Free Press, and CBC Radio Canada. Work by Dzama is also on view in Dress Rehearsal: The Art of Theatrical Design at The Legion of Honor through May 2025.

 

Lisa Kereszi, Junkyard office with TV, Trainer, Penna. 2001

Work by Lisa Kereszi is on view at Pierogi Gallery’s 30th Anniversary Exhibition, on view through December 22.

www.leeward.hawaii.edu/hoikeakea

Work by Lawrence Seward is on view in The Swell Is Coming at Hō’ikeākea Gallery in Pearl City, HI through February 2.

MK Market

Find the perfect Christmas goodies from Misaki Kawai’s web shop!

Sebastiaan Bremer, Schoener Goetterfunken XIXC, "Where the unknown reigns," (wo der unbekannte fronet), 2010, Unique hand-painted chromogenic print, 10 3/8 × 10 1/2 in | 26.4 × 26.7 cm

Sebastiaan Bremer’s Schoener Goetterfunken XIXC, "Where the unknown reigns," (wo der unbekannte fronet) served as inspiration for a cozy winter cocktail from cloudM in citizenM Tower of London Hotel in London.  

From left: Bill Komoski, Mary Clarke, Kerri, and Daniel Wiener; www.kerrischarlin.com/salons/

Photos from the most recent installment of Kerri Scharlin’s salon series featuring a panel on “Alternative News” are now on view on her website.

Spencer Finch, Cosmic Latte, 2017, 150 light fixtures and 417 incandescent bulbs, dimensions variable, one of 3 versions; Photo by Douglas Mason

Spencer Finch’s light installation, Cosmic Latter, is on view at MASS MoCA.