A Well-Leafed Tree Remixed
Co-presented with The Armory Show, Gladstone Gallery & Lehmann Maupin
Using his acclaimed Tree of Life (2020-21) series as a source of inspiration, David Salle has created A Well-Leafed Tree Remixed, accentuating the themes of his paintings with a dynamic choreography of moving objects, painterly gestures, and narrative elements. With surprising color harmonies that coexist, and at times collide with the grisaille palette of the figures, A Well-Leafed Tree Remixed tells the story of a painting sprung to life. Binding together disparate pictorial languages with his signature wit and visual musicality, Salle uses animation to compound the narrative potential of his figures, producing in the process a complex yet legible mode of storytelling.
September’s Midnight Moment is presented in partnership with The Armory Show, Gladstone Gallery, and Lehmann Maupin as a part of Armory Off-Site, the fair’s outdoor art program featuring large-scale artworks across New York City’s parks and public spaces.
A Well-Leafed Tree Remixed (2024)
Well-Leafed Tree 2021 Producer: Dminti
Animation and Editing: Dario Bolivar and Ashley Fletcher
Project Managers: Mary Schwab & Beth Fiore
Music composed by Michael Beharie and Sam Hillmer, produced by Michael Beharie
David Salle, born 1952, helped define the postmodern sensibility by combining figuration with an extremely varied pictorial language. Solo exhibitions of his work have been held at museums and galleries worldwide, and his paintings are in the collections of major museums here and abroad. He was recently the subject of a career survey exhibition at the Brant Foundation, Greenwich CT. Salle is also a regular contributor to the New York Review of Books, and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His collection of essays HOW TO SEE: Looking, Talking, and Thinking about Art, was published by W.W. Norton in 2016. He lives and works in Brooklyn and East Hampton, New York.
The Armory Show takes place at the Javits Center in New York from September 6-8, with a VIP Preview September 5. A cornerstone of New York’s cultural landscape since 1994, The Armory Show opens New York’s fall art season by bringing the world’s leading international contemporary and modern art galleries to the Javits Center each year. The fair emphasizes thoughtful programming, elevated presentations, curatorial excellence, meaningful institutional partnerships, and engaging public art activations. In 2023, The Armory Show was acquired by Frieze, one of the world’s leading organizations for modern and contemporary art. For more information on The Armory Show, visit thearmoryshow.com.
Frieze is a leading platform for modern and contemporary art dedicated to scholars, connoisseurs, collectors and the general public alike. Frieze comprises three magazines — frieze, Frieze Masters Magazine, and Frieze Week — and numerous international art fairs. Frieze is part of the IMG network.
Gladstone Gallery is a leading contemporary art gallery with locations in New York, Brussels, and Seoul. Representing more than seventy artists, as well as major foundations and estates, Gladstone Gallery has played a significant role in launching the careers of several of the most notable artists working today.
Since its inception in 1996, Lehmann Maupin has served as a leading contemporary art gallery with locations in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. For over 25 years, Lehmann Maupin has been instrumental in introducing international artists in new geographies and building long-lasting curatorial relationships. Known for championing diverse voices, the gallery’s program proudly features artists whose work challenges notions of identity and shapes international culture.
Support for Midnight Moment is provided in part by the National Endowment for the Arts; the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature; public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; and the Times Square Advertising Coalition, with additional in-kind support from the Times Square Edition Hotel.
Midnight Moment is made possible by the Times Square Advertising Coalition, ABC SuperSign, American Eagle, Big Outdoor, Branded Cities, Clear Channel, Coca-Cola, Diversified, Express, Heritage Outdoor Media, Levi's, LG, Line Friends, McDonald's, Microsoft, Midtown Financial, Morgan Stanley, New Tradition, Outfront, Paramount, Prudential, Sensory Interactive, Sephora, Sherwood Equities, Show + Tell, Silvercast, Swatch, TSX, and T-Mobile.
Photos by Michael Hull.