Exploring Identity and Urban Landscapes in Alannah Farrell’s Erect
Manpower, 2024 Watercolor, acrylic, and colored pencil on paper 14 1/8 x 10 1/4 in (35.9 x 26 cm) 17 3/4 x 13 7/8 x 1 5/8 in framed (45.1 x 35.2 x 4.1 cm framed) Courtesy the artist, Anat Egbi, Los Angeles / New York, and Alexander Gray Associates, New York © 2024 Alannah Farrell
Alannah Farrell’s latest exhibition, Erect, at Alexander Gray Associates in Germantown, New York, offers viewers an intimate look into the artist’s evolving practice. Featuring works exclusively on paper, the show invites close engagement with Farrell’s richly detailed, personal compositions. This deliberate choice of medium enhances the quiet intensity of the works, encouraging an almost tactile appreciation of the artist’s meticulous process and themes of identity and interiority.
Set against the bucolic backdrop of Germantown, the exhibition also provides a striking contrast to the urban cityscapes depicted in Farrell’s works. Removed from the clamor and chaos of the city, the show offers viewers the space to reflect on Farrell’s evocative portrayals of urban life. The looming high-rises and twilight streetscapes become metaphors for not only physical transformation but also the intricate, layered experiences of identity and community. The upstate location adds a meditative quality, echoing the exhibition’s introspective tone while underscoring the tension between solitude and collectivism.
Installation view: Alannah Farrell: Erect, Alexander Gray Associates, Germantown, 2024. Courtesy Alexander Gray Associates, New York. Photo: Dan Bradica
Farrell’s work belongs to a growing lineage of contemporary painters challenging the conventions of portraiture. Alongside artists like Robin F. Williams, Anthony Cudahy, and Clarity Haynes, Farrell reimagines the genre as a platform for inclusivity, representation, and critical dialogue. Their approach delves into the complexities of identity, exploring the fluid intersections of gender, sexuality, and the body. This inclusivity doesn’t merely broaden the canon of portraiture; it reshapes it, fostering essential conversations about who we see, how we see them, and why it matters.
Silver, 2024 Watercolor, acrylic, and colored pencil on paper 10 1/4 x 14 1/8 in (26 x 35.9 cm) 17 7/8 x 13 7/8 x 1 5/8 in framed (45.4 x 35.2 x 4.1 cm framed) Courtesy the artist, Anat Egbi, Los Angeles / New York, and Alexander Gray Associates, New York © 2024 Alannah Farrell
Inspired by the psychodrama of George Tooker and the surrealism of Hans Bellmer, Farrell’s compositions collapse interior and exterior worlds. Works like Estate (2024) blur the boundaries between self and setting, layering a mirrored silhouette over a nighttime cityscape. The resulting images are neither entirely cinematic nor wholly autobiographical, existing instead as vivid explorations of what it means to navigate a body and identity in flux.
One of the standout works in Erect is Manpower (2024), which offers a striking, modern take on the still life genre. In this piece, Farrell presents a dynamic composition that juxtaposes the meticulously arranged objects of a traditional still life with a powerful contemporary context. The piece features the gleaming form of the new World Trade Center rising in the distance, standing tall as a symbol of resilience and transformation. In the foreground, a window sill frames a delicate water pitcher, repurposed as a flower vase, standing next to a syringe—presumably referencing the hormonal replacement therapy that many trans individuals undergo. This symbolic pairing creates a poignant commentary on the intimate, personal journeys of identity and transformation, while also reflecting on the larger cultural shifts of 2024. By combining these elements, Farrell’s still life mirrors life itself in the present moment: one that is complex, evolving, and imbued with both beauty and struggle.
Installation view: Alannah Farrell: Erect, Alexander Gray Associates, Germantown, 2024. Courtesy Alexander Gray Associates, New York. Photo: Dan Bradica
Ultimately, Erect is more than a collection of works on paper; it is a profound exploration of how we build and dismantle the structures—both physical and conceptual—that define us. The exhibition provides a rare opportunity to step away from the noise, offering viewers space to engage deeply with Farrell’s poignant reflections on transformation, resilience, and liberation.
About Artist
Alannah Farrell (b. 1988, Kingston, NY) is a queer painter who lives and works in New York, NY. Farrell completed their BFA at The Cooper Union, New York, NY. They have presented their work in solo and group exhibitions at Anat Egbi, Los Angeles, CA and New York, NY; Green Family Art Foundation, Dallas, TX; Lyles and King, New York, NY; Alexander Gray Associates, New York, NY; Harper’s, New York, NY; Richard Heller Gallery, Santa Monica, CA; The Painting Center, New York, NY; Theirry Goldberg Gallery, New York, NY; and UTA Artist Space, Los Angeles, CA. Their work is in the permanent collection of the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, FL. They are represented by Anat Egbi, Los Angeles.
Erect opened on Erect September 21 and will be on view until December 21, 2024. For more information about this exhibition and others at the gallery, please visit Alexander Gray Associates’s website here.