About the Exhibit - Hey Tomorrow, Do You Have Some Room For Me: Failure Is A Part Of Being Alive

First of all, love the title of this exhibit - “Hey Tomorrow, Do You Have Some Room For Me: Failure Is A Part Of Being Alive.”

This is Arcmanoro Nile’s first exhibit since the announcement that he’s being represented by Lehmann Maupin. The exhibit is on view at Lehmann Maupin’s 24th street location from June 3 – August 28, 2021. 

“The works in Hey Tomorrow each represent the many perceived failures that we experience during the course of our lives that, when taken as a whole, are simply what make us human.” (source) 

As stated in the title, Failure is Part of Being Alive...and I would go as far as to say that failure is what makes us who we are if it’s handled properly. Failure can be a chance to learn, to grow, to have appreciation and gratitude. 

“All of these moments in life that people look at as failures are just a part of growing up and can actually open new doors and lead to new phases in life, when I look back at my own experiences, they weren’t really failures at all.” - Arcmanoro Niles (source) 

In this set of new paintings, Niles has also expanded his subject matter into creating still lives in addition to his signature portraits. Although his still lives lack actual individuals, they still have traces of a human presence by the arrangement of objects in the scene. 

Another key feature of Acrmanoro’s works are `seekers” or the little characters, or gremlins, depending on how you want to look at it, that live next to the ‘main’ figures.

 “Seekers are more impulsive, chasing whatever they think will make them happy in that moment, with no fear of consequence, while the human subjects are more vulnerable and open with their feelings.” - Arcmanoro Niles (source) 

In general Niles draws inspiration from “photographs of friends and relatives and from memories of his past, offering a highly personal record of contemporary life.” (source) 

Video Walkthrough

To see a walkthrough of the exhibit, see the video below.

About the Artist - Arcmanoro Niles

Arcmanoro Niles received his BFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and an MFA from New York Academy of Art, New York. He currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. 

“Niles is best known for his vivid, brightly-hued canvases that illustrate the seemingly mundane aspects of daily life―a man about to get into his car, a father and daughter sitting on their stoop with their dog, a woman waiting at a bus stop.” (source) 

Acrmanoro has an instantly recognizable style of using combinations of glitter, brightly hued colors and almost a golden skin tone for his figures. His inspiration for this comes from “baroque and religious painting” where they had clear painted halos. 

You can follow him on Instagram here, and you can read about his last exhibit at Rachel Uffner Gallery here.