Downtown, Los Angeles
Wilhelm Neusser
Bogged Down
Abigail OgilvyAbigail Ogilvy Gallery is pleased to present Bogged Down, featuring new work by Boston-based artist Wilhelm Neusser. In his third solo exhibition with our gallery, Neusser presents recent paintings inspired by the cranberry harvest in his home state of Massachusetts. The subject, which the artist has explored since 2018, skillfully merges close observations of regional agriculture and art historical references from 19th century realist painting to express the anxious, uncertain tenor of our current moment. Cranberries are one of the few fruits native to North America and the fall harvest of the crimson-colored berries is an agricultural spectacle. While for centuries cranberries were picked by hand, since the 1960s farmers have used more efficient, large-scale wet harvesting. With this method, cranberry bogs are flooded with water, causing the berries—which contain air pockets—to float. A "beater" machine separates the fruit, which is then corralled by floating barriers or booms, equipment similar to that used for oil spill containment. The paintings in Bogged Down depict this autumnal phenomenon, while laying bare the varied processes of their own making: expressive yet controlled brush marks, thick smudges from the palette knife, and sprinkled paint in various hues of red to create the signature hue of the cranberries. Neusser's richly textured surfaces draw on the tradition of 19th-century European painting that elevated mundane, backbreaking farm work to the subject of fine art. Artists like Jean-François Millet and Jules Breton, for example, portrayed laborers in muted tones, highlighting issues of poverty and structural hardship. In Bogged Down, anonymous figures wade knee-deep in berries. Some rake or corral the floating crops – hard work carried out for centuries predominantly by labor migrants. Other figures move awkwardly and inexplicably as if in a dream, their bodies and the surrounding landscape lit by crisp afternoon sun or misty twilight. While some paintings suggest a mystical atmosphere, others verge on environmental disaster. Figures are "bogged down" in fields of swirling color, destination unknown. Wilhelm Neusser was born in Cologne, Germany. From 1997 to 2001 he studied at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Karlsruhe with Professors Gerd van Dülmen und Harald Klingelhöller. He was also a guest student in art history and theory at the Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe with Professors Hans Belting und Siegfried Gohr. After his studies, Neusser lived and worked in Cologne until his relocation to the United States in 2011. Wilhelm Neusser's artwork has been widely exhibited and he has received numerous awards and fellowships. His recent museum exhibitions include the Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam, 2019), the Fruitlands Museum (Harvard, MA, 2019), and MASS MoCa (North Adams, MA, 2018). In 2020 and 2022 he was honored with a finalist grant in Painting from the Mass Cultural Council. Additional awards and recognition include the MASS MoCA Studio Program (2017), Vermont Studio Center (2013), Finalist, Wilhelm-Morgner-Prize, Soest (2010), International Artist in Residence, Boots Contemporary Art Space (St. Louis, MO, 2009), ZVAB Phönix Art Prize (2007). Neusser's work has been included in notable publications, including The Boston Globe, Boston art Review, Boston Magazine, Artscope Magazine, and Big Red & Shiny. Neusser lives and works in Somerville, MA.