Art for Looking at the Whole Vision, like Beyoncé Said
How to access artworks that aren't currently on view, from gallery viewing rooms to artists' studios
Good morning! We are in big, big trouble because last week I discovered I could include an exponential number of artworks in each newsletter. So today we are Substack-maxxing and taking a deep dive into the practices of three exciting contemporary artists.
I often share just one example by each artist in my posts (due to the former belief I was limited to 10-12 images), but I also preach the importance of looking at many works by an artist in order to understand their practice as a whole.
Queen Bey said, “I wanted to make this body of work and, I feel like it’s something that’s lost in Pop music. I wanted people to hear things differently and have a different first impression. Not just listen to a ten second clip but see the whole vision of the album.”
This applies to visual artists as well:
Louise Bourgeois said, “An artist’s work is a single continuous project. You cannot understand one piece without looking at the whole.”
And now that I know I can include way more images per newsletter, my readers are about to win BIG TIME on their subscriptions. Below are three artists whose studios I recently visited in my personal attempt to understand their practices at a higher level:
Ever Baldwin, previously featured here and here
Heather McKenna Pardo, previously featured here and here
AJ Liberto, previously featured here
Keep scrolling if you want to see a candid of me in overalls, drinking a beer, googly-eyed over art.
And for my pro tip this week: you don’t have to visit an artist’s studio and you don’t need to wait for an artist to have an exhibition to see more of their work. A gallery has inventory of an artist’s works in storage, and if the artist does not work with a gallery, you can reach out to them directly to see more works!
All you have to do is email and set up an appointment to see them. If I don’t know anyone at the gallery, I send a cold email and ask them to share available works. After the gallery sends a PDF or an online viewing room link, I ask if I can come in person to see the pieces I’m potentially interested in acquiring. The gallery pulls the works from their storage and installs them temporarily in a back viewing room.
You do not need to be ready to buy before asking to look.
Pulling, unpacking, and hanging artworks takes time and coordination, but this is a standard part of the process when considering a work for acquisition.
This week, Chozick Family Art Gallery is sharing an online viewing room link for available works by Heather McKenna Pardo. You can sign up for their newsletter here to receive the link once it is live, and below is a first look at my selections from it. Like this newsletter, a gallery’s online viewing room is an excellent first step for seeing many examples by an artist before going to see the works in person.
Galleries tell me every week that readers reached out about an artist they found here, and it is genuinely the best part of doing this because it means this newsletter is working! This newsletter has always been built on relationships: artists generously opening their studios, galleries sharing inventory often as a first look, and collectors asking engaging questions.
And if you'd rather skip a step, just reply to this email if one of the works below resonates with you. I will introduce you to the gallery and help arrange a viewing.
My hope is that this issue gets you from looking at art online to seeing art in person. Enjoy!
Ever Baldwin
I have loved following Ever’s work ever since Lauren Marinaro introduced me to their practice several years ago (like pre-pandemic years ago). Each piece is an arresting object that blurs the lines between abstract and figurative, frame and painting, organic and man-made. I’m obsessed with works that force viewers to do a double-take and engage a little longer than usual. The presented dichotomies in Ever’s work do just that, and I can also see the visual influences of Georgia O’Keeffe and Arthur Dove. I was elated when they had their first museum show at the Ogunquit Museum in Maine. Tbh, I was thrilled even more when Roberta Smith wrote about their show in the NYT. I mean, this line! “The conviction that forms have meaning verges on overheated but is leavened by wit.”
🟩 Available to View
If you are interested in seeing Ever Baldwin’s artworks in person, reply to this email and I’ll connect you with Marinaro Gallery to set up a viewing.
Ever Baldwin
The Immeasurables, 2023
Oil on canvas in charred wood frame
58 x 40 x 5 inches
$19,000
Ever Baldwin
Moxie, 2024
Oil on canvas in painted pine frame with 12K gold leaf
41 x 32 x 4 inches
$16,000
Ever Baldwin
No words, 2024
Oil on canvas in charred wood frame
31 x 26 x 4 inches
$9,500
Ever Baldwin
Prey, 2025
Oil on canvas in charred wood frame
24 x 24 x 4 inches
$9,500
Ever Baldwin
Not this time, 2024
Oil on canvas in charred wood frame
58 x 34 x 4 inches
$19,000
Heather McKenna Pardo
I’m not saying that every rabbit hole of exploring an artist’s practice will be rewarded with thrilling discoveries, but I am saying that about Heather’s work. During the studio visit, we spiraled into concepts of photography and light, scrolled through multiple catalogues of other artists who inspire her, and flipped through mountains of pages of her photography and painting. I could barely contain all the ideas in my brain after we really looked at each canvas and discussed edges, framing, and contrast. While her paintings may look like bright, giant windows, I personally find them to be portals into other dimensions. I can’t wait to see more of her work in person at Chozick Family Art Gallery.
🟩 Available to View
Heather McKenna Pardo’s available works can be viewed through Chozick Family Art Gallery in Tribeca. If you’d like to schedule a viewing, reply to this email and I’ll happily make the introduction.
Heather McKenna Pardo
incidental edge 24 (from light series), 2026
Oil on canvas
94 x 52 inches (overall)
45 x 52 inches (each)
$12,500
Heather McKenna Pardo
untitled (light series 08), 2019
Oil on canvas
97 x 60 inches (overall)
48 x 60 inches (each)
$12,500
Heather McKenna Pardo
incidental edge 10 (from light series), 2021
Oil on canvas
40 x 40 inches
$6,800
Heather McKenna Pardo
incidental edge 20 (from light series), 2022
incidental edge 21 (from light series), 2022
Oil on canvas
40 x 30 inches each
$6,000 each
Heather McKenna Pardo
incidental edge 27 (from light series), 2026
Oil on canvas
54 x 63 inches
$9,000
Heather McKenna Pardo
titled painting 3 (from light series), 2023
Oil on canvas
50 x 40 inches
$7,600
Heather McKenna Pardo
incidental edge 29 (from light series), 2026
Oil on canvas
50 x 28 inches (overall)
24 x 28 inches (each)
$6,800
Heather McKenna Pardo
incidental edge 08 (from light series), 2019
Oil on canvas
60 x 48 inches
$9,000
AJ Liberto
If you own a piece by AJ Liberto, anyone who visits your home and sees your collection will KNOW that piece is by AJ Liberto. Talk about a strong visual language! The tension is palpable and direct: wooden structures built by hand and then these rocks smashing through. It’s construction and destruction; it’s action in motion but suspended. AJ has recently shown at two of the major galleries upstate: Roundabouts and Bill Arning. The detail shots below were necessary so you can see up close the level of precision and intention AJ brings to each piece. And for my fellow sculpture addicts who dare to walk on the wild side, ask me about the Goblin carts and their narratives surrounding sentience, past lives, and future selves.
🟩 Available to View
If you are interested in seeing AJ Liberto’s artworks in person, reply to this email and I’ll connect you with the artist to set up a viewing.
AJ Liberto
ONE MAN’S TRAGEDY IS ANOTHER MAN’S SLAPPED STICKS, 2019-2025
Resawn and milled found pine, nails, glue, steel, concrete chunk found in Concord, NH, plywood and mahogany pattern (pedestal)
51 x 18 x 18 inches
$3,000
AJ Liberto
YOU ARE NOT IMAGINING THAT HISSING SOUND, 2019-2025
Resawn and milled found pine, nails, glue, cast iron drain cover, rocks found in Somerville, MA, Marmoleum (pedestal)
41 x 23 x 15 inches
$6,000
AJ Liberto
FERRY, CARRY, BEAR, TAKE, YIELD, 2025
Resawn and milled found pine, nails, glue, steel, stone found in Somerville, MA, old-growth maple felled from Connecticut churchyard, mirrored acrylic
65 x 30 x 18 inches
$15,000
AJ Liberto
GOBLIN CART (HOLY ROLLER), 2025
Unearthed iron parts and shale from quarry works ruin in Kerhonkson, NY, old-growth maple felled from Connecticut churchyard, brass, stainless steel, mild steel, silica gel, cloth from old toolbox, casters from Home Depot
82 x 36 x 22 inches
$7,500
AJ Liberto
GOBLIN CART (SHITTY PAST US AND DEAD FUTURE US CONSPIRING AGAINST COOL NOW US), 2025
Granite surface plate, cast iron, mild steel, stainless steel, brass, aluminum, polished found cast iron blocks, quartz, old-growth maple felled from Connecticut churchyard, broken safety glass, restored found beaker, brass peephole, walnut, dead machinist’s surface gauge, core samples from Ontonagon (Upper Peninsula) Michigan, plastic, felt, casters from Home Depot
64 x 36 x 22 inches
$7,500
AJ Liberto
FLOATER (IN THE EYE OF GOD), 2025
Resawn and milled found pine, nails, glue, steel, stone found in Philadelphia, PA, found table base, cast iron surface plate
35 x 15 x 15 inches
$1,500
AJ Liberto
CRISSCROSS APPLESAUCE ALL IS LOST, 2025
Resawn and milled found pine, nails, glue, steel, stone found in Somerville, MA, old-growth maple felled from Connecticut churchyard
51 x 18 x 18 inches
$3,000
If you enjoy this newsletter,
consider becoming a paid subscriber.
And if you know someone building a thoughtful collection,
feel free to forward this issue.
💚