David Datuna Premieres New Series at Art Southampton

A startling new series of David Datuna’s conceptual work will debut at Art Southampton this month in the booth of Birnam Wood Galleries. This series of works will re-interpret traditional still life using the prismatic effects of cascading eyeglass lenses that are the distinctive element of the artist’s body of work. The fair opens on July 25 and will run through July 28 in Southampton, New York.

These first examples of Datuna’s Flowers series premiering at Art Southampton will offer a preview of works to be shown at Birnam Wood Galleries in New York in an upcoming solo show in 2014. Birnam Wood Galleries is the primary representative of David Datuna’s work in the U.S.

The debut of this new series will kick off a series of important events for the artist. Datuna will be awarded the Malevich Prize in Paris in October, followed by simultaneous exhibitions this fall at Gallery Shchukin locations in Moscow and Paris. Titled David Datuna: Eyes to Eyes, these exhibitions will present his perception of the tumult of 100 years of Russian history. At the show’s focal point will be an installation featuring the encounter of two portraits: Russian President Vladimir Putin and the last Russian Czar, Nicholas II. The exhibition will also include several of Datuna’s distinctive flags that engage the viewer in a dialogue on culture and identity, re-imagining potent national symbols as art and artifact.

Originally from the Republic of Georgia, David Datuna now lives and maintains a studio in New York. His work has been exhibited extensively, including shows in Europe, Russia, China and the United States. He is represented in Europe and Russia by Gallery Shchukin, and in the United States by Birnam Wood Galleries.