Holding your breath suggests anticipation. But to wait to exhale is so much more loaded. The sensation is one of withholding more than anticipating. You want to dance, but only when you can do so with reckless abandon, without surveillance or interruption, or judgment. You want to live, but only on your terms. A real life, not a half life. Portraits of acrylic on canvas depict Black women in their variance and range. The quiet tension that precedes a revelation swirls through their paintings, all of which center the Black woman. Oxygen is the medium of life, and here serves

Talk us through a typical day in studio for you? Every day varies, but I keep to my routine of stretching, and a cold shower. Music is vital in my studio. The genre depends on what I am working on and the tempo I’m attempting to access creatively. Usually tends to be classical, hip-hop or jazz. I am hugely influenced by music; so much so I named my studio Hitsville, U.S.A, after Motown Records. S/O Berry Gordy. Motown was a symbol of hope for my community. It was Black owned, Black ran and represented Black artistry. Rings true to what

Restrained paintings by Anaja Hvastija Gaia, curated by Sophia Ballesteros, use the thinnest application of oil paint I’ve seen in a minute to produce an effervescent effect on otherwise simple compositions of pale, round bodies coalescing with expanses of desert. LOS ANGELES — There’s a perennial booth rule at Spring/Break Art Show: “No white walls.” This directive gave the warehouse space in Culver City the aura of a migraine without the headache. I was offered a tour during the fair’s opening, but I preferred to drift and collect my little papers as I went, letting myself be drawn in by

This year’s installation in the promenade features a surreal group of rectangular glass blocks with what appear to be colorful, life-size dancers trapped inside — part of a series that the featured artist, Dustin Yellin, calls “Psychogeographies.” Closer inspection reveals that each block is made up of more than two dozen thin panels of glass, with the layers decorated with paint or drawings or collages and then glued together. Viewed from the front or back, they form striking three-dimensional figures; from the side, the images seem to disappear. Read the full article at https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/26/arts/dance/new-york-city-ballet-applies-a-surreal-touch-to-build-audiences.html?searchResultPosition=2