Diane Kotila

September 22–December 12, 2020
Five paintings installed on gray walls. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

Two paintings installed on a gray wall, both depicting a cartoon head expressing varying states of emotion: the one on the left fearful, the one on the right bloodied and upset.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

Seven paintings installed on gray walls: three to the left, two to the right and two on the back wall. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

Three paintings of varying size installed on a gray wall.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

Five paintings installed on gray walls. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

Two paintings installed on a gray wall. The painting to the left depicts a disembodied cartoon head, while the painting to the right depicts a cartoon bust with a similar head.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

Three paintings installed on a gray wall. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

Two found object sculptures. At the top is a saw with its blade painted in muted peach tones. At bottom is an object consisting of two hammers joined at the butt.

Diane Kotila, installation view, 2020

A disembodied cartoon head with an angry expression against a dark umber background.

Diane Kotila
Untitled, 2020
Oil on linen wrapped panel
40 × 30 in.

A disembodied cartoon head with an aggravated expression lying on its side against a gray background.

Diane Kotila
Untitled, 2020
Oil on linen wrapped panel
30 × 30 in.

Bust of a cartoon figure wearing a gray collared shirt with an angry expression in front of a dark brown background, surrounded by a black shadow.

Diane Kotila
Untitled, 2020
Oil on linen wrapped panel
40 × 40 in.

Press Release

White Columns is pleased to present the first solo exhibition by the New York-based artist Diane Kotila. Kotila’s exhibition comprises a group of nine recent oil-on-linen paintings and two painted sculptural works.

Writing about her approach, Kotila has described her painting as “an exploration of historically and culturally familiar portraiture tropes.  A study of figuration colliding with abstraction, the meeting point unknowable and elusive.” Each of Kotila’s paintings features a disembodied or decapitated portrait-like image based on the Belgian cartoon character Tintin. Kotila has stated that: “In this body of work, I turned to classic strategies, using Caravaggio and Velázquez among others as sources, as a starting point, using the face of Tintin as a vessel or a foil. Like many cartoon characters, the face of Tintin consists of a rudimentary set of marks treated with great consistency to evoke the full range of human emotion. But no absolutes exist in this realm of interpretation. By beheading the character, isolating the features from the body and any external context, the subject is slippery and deceptive. In spite of the invitation to be easily grasped, the expression turns over and over, remaining unresolved.”

Kotila’s visceral work is characterized by an uneasy tension that is established between her depictions of violence and the typically mordant sense of the comedic that underscores her approach. A sense of rupture and fragmentation prevails throughout Kotila’s work. Foregrounding a series of oppositional formal devices – e.g. light/dark, humor/horror, etc. – Kotila’s work actively explores uncomfortable truths. Like the work of artists as distinct as Philip Guston, Leon Golub, Bruce Nauman, and Joyce Pensato, among others, Diane Kotila’s work ultimately seeks to both illuminate and interrogate the violence – emotional, psychological, and societal – that continues to shape and condition La Comédie humaine.

Diane Kotila (b. 1965) lives and works in New York. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Western Michigan University in 1986. Her work has previously been presented at Miart, Milan by Anthony Reynolds Gallery (2018); S|2 London gallery, Sotheby’s, London (2019); and by Kenny Schachter at the Felix Art Fair, Los Angeles (2020.)

For further information, contact: info@whitecolumns.org

Checklist

Five paintings installed on gray walls. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.
Two paintings installed on a gray wall, both depicting a cartoon head expressing varying states of emotion: the one on the left fearful, the one on the right bloodied and upset.
Seven paintings installed on gray walls: three to the left, two to the right and two on the back wall. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.
Three paintings of varying size installed on a gray wall.
Five paintings installed on gray walls. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.
Two paintings installed on a gray wall. The painting to the left depicts a disembodied cartoon head, while the painting to the right depicts a cartoon bust with a similar head.
Three paintings installed on a gray wall. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.
Two found object sculptures. At the top is a saw with its blade painted in muted peach tones. At bottom is an object consisting of two hammers joined at the butt.
A disembodied cartoon head with an angry expression against a dark umber background.
A disembodied cartoon head with an aggravated expression lying on its side against a gray background.
Bust of a cartoon figure wearing a gray collared shirt with an angry expression in front of a dark brown background, surrounded by a black shadow.

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Five paintings installed on gray walls. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.)

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Two paintings installed on a gray wall, both depicting a cartoon head expressing varying states of emotion: the one on the left fearful, the one on the right bloodied and upset.)

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Seven paintings installed on gray walls: three to the left, two to the right and two on the back wall. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.)

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Three paintings of varying size installed on a gray wall.)

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Five paintings installed on gray walls. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.)

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Two paintings installed on a gray wall. The painting to the left depicts a disembodied cartoon head, while the painting to the right depicts a cartoon bust with a similar head.)

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Three paintings installed on a gray wall. In the foreground, two found object sculptures lie on a pedestal.)

Installation view: Diane Kotila (Two found object sculptures. At the top is a saw with its blade painted in muted peach tones. At bottom is an object consisting of two hammers joined at the butt.)

Diane Kotila
Untitled, 2020
Oil on linen wrapped panel
40 × 30 in. (A disembodied cartoon head with an angry expression against a dark umber background.)

Diane Kotila
Untitled, 2020
Oil on linen wrapped panel
30 × 30 in. (A disembodied cartoon head with an aggravated expression lying on its side against a gray background.)

Diane Kotila
Untitled, 2020
Oil on linen wrapped panel
40 × 40 in. (Bust of a cartoon figure wearing a gray collared shirt with an angry expression in front of a dark brown background, surrounded by a black shadow.)