These Poetic Paintings About the Small Moments in Life Show Why March Avery Is Much More Than Just Milton Avery’s Daughter

See the artist's new show at Blum & Poe New York.

March Avery, Two Artists and a Critic (1997). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery” at Blum & Poe, New York
on view through September 14, 2019

What the Gallery Says: “In March Avery’s work we are presented with a looking glass of sorts in which origin is itself preserved by the nature of its own reflection,” writes Jenni Crain in the exhibition catalogue. In brightly colored canvases that focus “on portraiture and landscape… punctuated with still life, the selection of works on view repositions the vitality of moments passed through paint applied to canvas… These diaristic tendencies that characterize Avery’s oeuvre encapsulate a lifelong commitment to the process of painting itself.”

Why It’s Worth a Look: Though she may have lived her entire life known as the daughter of Milton Avery and Sally Michel, March Avery has carved out her own place as a deft painter. This is the first large-scale solo show of Avery’s work in New York in more than 20 years, and her first show with Blum & Poe.

What It Looks Like:

March Avery, <i>Sofa Companions</i> (1967). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Sofa Companions (1967). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, <i>Standing Nude</i> (1963). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Standing Nude (1963). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

Installation view of "March Avery." © March Avery, Courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Installation view of “March Avery.” © March Avery. Courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

March Avery, <i>Ruth in a Sling Chair</i> (1985). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Ruth in a Sling Chair (1985). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, <i>Family Tea</i> (1965). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Family Tea (1965). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

Installation view of "March Avery." © March Avery, Courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Installation view of “March Avery.” © March Avery. Courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

March Avery, <i>Restless Water</i> (1984). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Restless Water (1984). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, <i>Rocking Chair Reader</i> (2010). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Rocking Chair Reader (2010). © March Avery, courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, <i>The Meeting</i> (1977). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, The Meeting (1977). © March Avery, courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

Installation view of "March Avery." © March Avery, Courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Installation view of “March Avery.” © March Avery. Courtesy of the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

March Avery, <i>Dark Spring Landscape</i> (1973). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Dark Spring Landscape (1973). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, <i>Sean's Still Life</i> (1969). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.

March Avery, Sean’s Still Life (1969). © March Avery, courtesy the artist and Blum & Poe, Los Angeles/New York/Tokyo.


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