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Exhibition Details

Twenty-One Humors
Feb 7 – Mar 19, 2022

Featured Artists

Rigo 23
David Byrne
R. Crumb
Brian DeGraw
Elmgreen & Dragset
Ryan Gander
Nina Katchadourian
Scott King
Sadie Laska
Jayson Musson
Oliver Payne
Michael Portnoy
Stephen Powers
Scott Reeder
Tyson Reeder
Kenya (Robinson)
Michael Smith
Saul Steinberg
Marianne Vitale
Bedwyr Williams
Tori Wrånes
Monsieur Zohore

Musician David Byrne has nurtured a fine arts practice for much of his five-decade-long career. Byrne often imbues his understated, playful drawings, which are currently on view at Pace Gallery in New York as part of his solo exhibition How I Learned About Non-Rational Logic, with a sense of humor and wit.

The artist has used these works to grapple with the uncertainties of the pandemic and other anxiety-inducing issues, engaging an unpredictable, non-rational sense of logic in his pursuits on paper.

To complement Byrne’s ongoing in-person presentation, this online exhibition, titled Twenty-One Humors, brings together over 40 works by more than 20 artists who employ humor in their practices in surprising ways. Organized by Pace Live Curatorial Director Mark Beasley and Online Sales Director Christiana Ine-Kimba Boyle in collaboration with Byrne, the virtual show includes pieces by artists within and beyond Pace’s program, with Nina Katchadourian, Elmgreen & Dragset, R. Crumb, Sadie Laska, Jayson Musson, Saul Steinberg, Tori Wrånes, and Marianne Vitale among them. Spanning works on paper, sculptures, and photographs, the pieces on view in this exhibition often favor wry and dark humor, conveying uncomfortable truths about the human condition and contemporary life.

A text by writer and comedian Morgan Bassichis is featured throughout this online exhibition. Commissioned by Pace, Bassichis’s work is titled Questions to Ask Before Saying “Yes” to a Gig. Fifty questions range from “Can I bring my private bathroom from home?” to “How old is too old not to know your gender?” Entertaining, confounding, and freewheeling, these queries can be found amid the artworks in the following show.

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Rigo 23, Found Lost Bird Fliers, 2015-2017, photocopies on paper with packing, masking and duct tape, 8-1/2" × 11" (21.6 cm × 27.9 cm), frame

Rigo 23

Rigo 23, Found Lost Bird Fliers, 2015-2017, photocopies on paper with packing, masking and duct tape, 8-1/2" × 11" (21.6 cm × 27.9 cm), frame
Rigo 23, Found Lost Bird Fliers, 2015-2017, photocopies on paper with packing, masking and duct tape, 8-1/2" × 11" (21.6 cm × 27.9 cm), frame
Rigo 23, Found Lost Bird Fliers, 2015-2017, photocopies on paper with packing, masking and duct tape, 8-1/2" × 11" (21.6 cm × 27.9 cm), frame
Rigo 23, Found Lost Bird Fliers, 2015-2017, photocopies on paper with packing, masking and duct tape, 8-1/2" × 11" (21.6 cm × 27.9 cm), frame
David Byrne, 3 Bad Hands, 2020, fadeproof waterproof ink on archival paper, 8-1/2" × 11" (21.6 cm × 27.9 cm), paper

David Byrne

David Byrne, Tabletop Adventures, 2020, fadeproof waterproof ink on archival paper, 8-1/2" × 11" (21.6 cm × 27.9 cm), paper
David Byrne, The Big Baby, 2020, fadeproof waterproof ink on archival paper, 9" × 12" (22.9 cm × 30.5 cm), paper
R. Crumb, Peg Leg Howell, 2010, ink and correction fluid on paper, 8" × 5-7/8" (20.3 cm × 14.9 cm) 15-7/8" × 13-1/4" × 1" (40.3 cm × 33.7 cm × 2.5 cm), frame

R. Crumb

R. Crumb, A. Carrara et son Orchestre du Tourbillon, n.d., ink and correction fluid on paper, 5-7/8" × 7-7/8" (14.9 cm × 20 cm), image 6-7/16" × 8-1/4" (16.4 cm × 21 cm), paper 11-1/2" × 13-5/8" × 1-1/4" (29.2 cm × 34.6 cm × 3.2 cm), frame
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Brian DeGraw

Brian Degraw, Unemployment Assistance, 2020, color pencil, watercolor, graphite, acrylic on paper, 30" × 22" (76.2 cm × 55.9 cm)
Brian Degraw, Notes on Frequency of Cats Purr (100Hz), 2021, color pencil, charcoal, graphite, watercolor on paper, 14" × 17" (35.6 cm × 43.2 cm)

Elmgreen & Dragset

Elmgreen & Dragset, Coupled Lamp (Pink), 2021, ceramic, lampshade, electricals, 20-7/8" × 12-15/16" × 7-7/8" (53 cm × 32.9 cm × 20 cm)
Elmgreen & Dragset, The Kiss, 2021, steel, lacquer, 21-5/8" × 18-1/2" × 23-5/8" (54.9 cm × 47 cm × 60 cm)
Ryan Gander, A Moving Object, or Intent, 2017, bronze, enamel paint, 3-15/16" × 5-7/8" × 4-5/16" (10 cm × 14.9 cm × 11 cm)

Ryan Gander

Nina Katchadourian

Nina Katchadourian, Marketing Tips for Spiders, 1998, C-Print, 30" × 20" (76.2 cm × 50.8 cm) framed, 31-1/2" × 21-1/2" (80 cm x 54.6 cm)
Nina Katchadourian, This is My Great Place, 2015, C-print, 15-1/2" × 19" (39.4 cm × 48.3 cm)

Scott King, Excerpt from The Debrist Manifesto, Live at Camden Art Centre, November 11, 2021, Filmed by Paul Kelly © Scott King

Scott King

Scott King, A. The Career Genius, 2022, digital file, dimensions variable
Scott King, B. The Non-Career Genius, 2022, digital file, dimensions variable
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Sadie Laska, Everything is Just Dirt! II, 2021, fabric and paint on flag, 60-1/2" × 35" (153.7 cm × 88.9 cm)

Sadie Laska

Jayson Musson

Jayson Musson, Superman’s Therapist, 2009, tempera on paper, 20" × 30" (50.8 cm × 76.2 cm)
Jayson Musson, Nietzsche Was Wrong, 2009, tempera on paper, 20" × 30" (50.8 cm × 76.2 cm)
Jayson Musson, Ideals Gone, 2009, tempera on paper, 20" × 30" (50.8 cm × 76.2 cm)
Jayson Musson, Libido, 2009, tempera on paper, 20" × 30" (50.8 cm × 76.2 cm)
Oliver Payne, Untitled (Candy Crush Collage), 2019, photo-image, adhesive stickers, 18" × 24" (45.7 cm × 61 cm)

Oliver Payne

Michael Portnoy, The Gravitas Airslickers, 2020, ceramic, cotton laces, dimensions variable

Michael Portnoy

Michael Portnoy, The RequiEmpath Stampede 9000s, 2020, ceramic, dimensions variable
Michael Portnoy, The Tekton Bafflers, 2020, ceramic, cotton laces, dimensions variable
Stephen Powers, Dont Ask Me For Shit, TBC, tempera, board, tacks, 25-1/2" × 23-1/2" (64.8 cm × 59.7 cm)

Stephen Powers

Scott Reeder

Scott Reeder, Ideas for a TV Show Episode or a Painting, 2022, acrylic and wax pastel on canvas, 64" × 50" (162.6 cm × 127 cm)
Scott Reeder, Bread & Butter (Sunset Hot Tub), 2022, oil on canvas, 30" × 24" (76.2 cm × 61 cm)
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Tyson Reeder

Tyson Reeder, Judd, 2020, acrylic and graphite on canvas, 36" × 48" (91.4 cm × 121.9 cm) 37-1/4" × 49-1/4" × 2-1/8" (94.6 cm × 125.1 cm × 5.4 cm), frame
Kenya (Robinson), If I’d’ve Known You Were Coming, I’d’ve Baked You a Cake, 2018, plastic resin, paint, doilies, 6-3/4" × 10-1/2" × 9" (17.1 cm × 26.7 cm × 22.9 cm)

Kenya (Robinson)

Michael Smith, Water Cooler Bylaws, 2015, ink and watercolor on paper, 12" × 9" (30.5 cm × 22.9 cm), sheet 15" × 12" (38.1 cm × 30.5 cm), frame

Michael Smith

Michael Smith, Untitled, 2015, ink and watercolor on paper, 13-3/4" × 17" (34.9 cm × 43.2 cm)
Michael Smith, We Are Coming, Watch Out, 2015, ink and watercolor on paper, 16" × 20" (40.6 cm × 50.8 cm), sheet 19" × 23" (48.3 cm × 58.4 cm), frame

Saul Steinberg

Saul Steinberg, A Retrospective, 1975, ink and pencil on handmade laid paper, 22-7/8" × 18" (58.1 cm × 45.7 cm), paper
Saul Steinberg, Bedroom Sphinx, 1987, oil pastel, pencil, and wash on paper, 56-1/2 x 45-1/2"
Marianne Vitale, Douchebag (1), 2012, bronze, dimensions variable

Marianne Vitale

Marianne Vitale, Douchebag (2), 2012, bronze, dimensions variable
Marianne Vitale, Douchebag (3), 2012, bronze, dimensions variable
Bedwyr Williams, Passive Aggressive Artist Healer Falls Out With The Person Who Has The Keys To The Village Hall, 2021, duratrans light box, metal frame, 11-13/16" × 11-13/16" × 1-3/16" (30 cm × 30 cm × 3 cm)

Bedwyr Williams

Bedwyr Williams, Party Pooper Artists With Horrible Personalities Looking At The Possibilities Of The Gallery Being A Space For Healing, 2021, duratrans light box, metal frame, 11-13/16" × 11-13/16" × 1-3/16" (30 cm × 30 cm × 3 cm)
Bedwyr Williams, I'm Looking For Overly Serious Young People That Dress Like Marionettes To Work On A Project, 2021, duratrans light box, metal frame, 11-13/16" × 11-13/16" × 1-3/16" (30 cm × 30 cm × 3 cm)
Bedwyr Williams, Artists That Make Art About Witches Tread On Each Others Long Toenails And Try Casting Spells On Each Other And Their Pets, 2021, duratrans light box, metal frame, 11-13/16" × 11-13/16" × 1-3/16" (30 cm × 30 cm × 3 cm)
Bedwyr Williams, Hugs and Baccy Tattooed Cod Philosopher Being Told To Be Quiet By Alien Leader After Invasion Of Earth, 2021, duratrans light box, metal frame, 11-13/16" × 11-13/16" × 1-3/16" (30 cm × 30 cm × 3 cm)
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Tori Wrånes

Tori Wrånes, The Opposite is Also True 2, 2011, c-print, 62-3/16" × 69-5/16" (158 cm × 176.1 cm)
Tori Wrånes, Multistand, 2016, tiff file on photo paper, 40-15/16" × 27-15/16" (104 cm × 71 cm)
Tori Wrånes, Tenniscat, 2016, tiff file on photo paper, 30-11/16" × 20-1/2" (77.9 cm × 52.1 cm)
Tori Wrånes, The Singer, 2014, c-print, 27-15/16" × 40-15/16" (71 cm × 104 cm)
Monsieur Zohore, Hurricane Becky, 2021, hurricane wall mount oscillating fan, hair weave, and hair beads, 32" × 19" × 5" (81.3 cm × 48.3 cm × 12.7 cm)

Monsieur Zohore

Monsieur Zohore, Brown Betty, 2022, mixed media on canvas, 72" × 48" (182.9 cm × 121.9 cm)
Monsieur Zohore, Animal Lover, 2022, mixed media on canvas, 48" × 36" × 2" (121.9 cm × 91.4 cm × 5.1 cm)

To inquire about any of the artists or artworks featured in this exhibition, please email us at inquiries@pacegallery.com.

  • Past, Twenty-One Humors, Feb 7, 2022