New York Critic's Picks

Matthew Higgs

MURRAY GUY GALLERY
453 West 17th Street
January 17 - February 22

"Art isn't Easy." British expat critic, curator and artist Matthew Higgs may be stating the obvious in the title of his second solo show at Murray Guy, but it's a truism that bears repeating. Possessed of a well-nigh infallible internal compass when it comes to navigating the highways and byways of contemporary practice, Higgs sensibly elects to keep his own output modest. Collecting and framing the yellowing title pages of such edifying volumes as I Married an Artist‚ Ink on Paper‚ and Queer Thing Painting‚ he reveals a forgotten undercurrent of pulp novels, beginners' guides, and obscure biographies that constitutes a wry counterpart to the recognized art-historical canon. A few pages have been given an added tweak of deadpan literalism: Art for Children‚ 2002, is hung at toddler height, Upside Down‚ 2002, is inverted, and Hidden Art, 2002, has been spirited away to an undisclosed location. And crossing out Vladimir Nabokov's Despair line by line to arrive at Total Despair, Higgs leaves only the following line untouched: "Ah, me! What can there be more commonplace than an impecunious artist? If some good soul helped me to arrange an exhibition, next day I'd be famous and rich."

—Michael Wilson