Kelly Beeman - New Now & Design Hong Kong Sunday, November 26, 2023 | Phillips

Create your first list.

Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.

  • “I think my paintings balance on this beam between the past and future.”
    — Kelly Beeman

     

    The two female figures in Kelly Beeman’s Cordless Phone, 2020, directly confront viewers in their unassuming, almost dreary gaze. Their hands hold up a teal phone, shielding a portion of their faces, as if hiding from the viewer. The phone is pressed up on the cheek of the figure on the right, yet they both seem to be listening attentively: their elongated necks lean in, faces turning towards the centre of the composition. All privacy is cast aside, giving way to a deeper sense of intimacy between the two. Viewers are only privileged to an external, almost voyeuristic vantage point into their secret. 


    A silhouette of the phone’s antenna evokes nostalgia, a nod to an era that preceded the smartphone. The women are suspended in a liminal space and time, caught in a predicament between reality and fantasy. The monochromatic background along with soft, uniform applications of pinkish hues encapsulate viewers in a dream-like, intangible mise-en-scène. 


    Known for her subdued yet figurative style, New-York-based contemporary artist Kelly Beeman (b. 1983 in Oklahoma City, USA) began pursuing drawing and watercolour from a young age. Recognition of her works began to soar in 2015, and led her to key collaborations in the fashion industry, including a Travel Book with Louis Vuitton in 2020, and exhibitions at a number of prominent galleries such as Thierry Goldberg Gallery, New York and Perrotin Seoul, who currently represent Beeman. Now known for her oil paintings, Beeman’s watercolour techniques are embodied in her masterful handling of mediums, where clean, fluid lines flood into fields of soft colours. The delicately patterned clothing in Cordless Phone reflects her understanding of fashion illustration. From introspective ethereal visions to hazy recollections of memory, Beeman’s diverse oeuvres invites contemplation.


    Beeman’s most recent solo exhibitions represented Perrotin Tokyo at Art Fair Tokyo in March 2023 and Perrotin New York, September through October 2023. 

     

    Beeman speaking about her works, 2019
    Video Courtesy Laura Mercier

    • Provenance

      3125C Galleria, Hong Kong
      Acquired from the above by the present owner

10

Cordless Phone

signed and dated 'Kelly Beeman 2020' on the reverse
oil on canvas
121.9 x 152.2 cm. (47 7/8 x 59 7/8 in.)
Executed in 2020.

Full Cataloguing

Estimate
HK$120,000 - 180,000 
€14,200-21,300
$15,400-23,100

Sold for HK$254,000

Contact Specialist

Angela Tian
Associate Specialist, Head of New Now & Design Sale
20th Century & Contemporary Art, Hong Kong
+852 2318 2058
AngelaTian@phillips.com

New Now & Design

Hong Kong Auction 26 November 2023