Promenade

“How much does our society reward appearing even at the expense of being?” muses Andrew Solomon in his 2004 essay “Dandyism.” Painter Sarah Ball found inspiration in the text when researching the concept of “Tilted,” her new show on view at Stephen Friedman Gallery in TriBeCa, New York. Ball, 58, has long mined outward expressions of personal identity for her ethereal portraiture, marked by muted color palettes and vividly executed details. “For me, it’s always about identity and how we define ourselves,” she says. “And how we might be defined by others.”

‍

‍

In the show—the British artist’s first solo presentation in New York City—10 paintings capture gender non-conforming figures who, in the artist’s eyes, embody a contemporary image of the dandy. The persona has roots going back to late-19th century Europe, when men would dress up in extravagant outfits, almost as a performance-for-the-sake-of-it in upscale, socially visible occasions, or even simply taking walks down public promenades.

‍

The present-day sense of the archetype, Ball reflects, is “anyone who is completely individual and who follows their own path. That can be dabbling with creativity and theatricality, and playing with gender and ideas of camp.” In realizing “Tilted,” Ball set about finding and immortalizing such characters. 

‍

Recruited from real life as well as through social media, the seven people include men and non-binary individuals, along with one woman. Each subject’s joyfully conspicuous personal style is featured in a painting (or paintings) named after them. Declan, for instance, whom Ball met while he was working at a shop in London, poses in a billowing white gown while holding his long-haired guinea pig, wrapped in a matching lace kerchief. Von, whom Ball found on Instagram, appears in two paintings; in both instances, they don lace bonnets and bleached eyebrows, and, in one, bright yellow hair. A depiction of Henry, another social-media recruit, portrays the influencer in a patterned tie, immaculate beige blazer and matching wide-brim hat; the hue of a martini in hand echoes that of a pair of spectacles tucked in their jacket pocket. The artist’s color choices throughout create subtle harmonies in the composition, while minute details—delicately rendered diaphanous fabrics; discrete hairs; the furrow of a brow—became all the more impactful as these quiet yet hypnotic portraits tower between five and nearly eight-and-a-half feet tall. Ball’s vision for the series is a simple one: “I hope that it’s celebratory, really.” 

‍

Sarah Ball: Tilted is on view at Stephen Friedman Gallery at 54 Franklin Street, New York, New York 10013 through March 23, 2024.

‍