5 Artists on Our Radar in October 2024

“Artists on Our Radar” is a monthly series focused on five artists who have our attention. Utilizing our art expertise and Artsy data, we’ve determined which artists made an impact this past month through new gallery representation, exhibitions, auctions, art fairs, or fresh works on Artsy.

Stephen Buscemi

B. 1998, Long Island, New York. Lives and works in New York.

Not to be confused with the perennial character actor, Stephen Buscemi is a painter whose figurative depictions are suffused with an uneasy sense of mystery. The artist’s shadowy, vaguely expository paintings often feature aspects of the male figure: a hand over a piano, or an obscured figure behind a microphone, for example. What unites all of the characters (perhaps they are the same character?) in the artist’s universe is the darkened hues with which they’re rendered and the sense of enigma that surrounds them.

In the artist’s current show, “In The Night When I Am Full,” on view at New York gallery Harper’s through October 26th, twilight scenes are once again the focus. Here, subjects include dancers and tattooed hands shrouded in misty environments in which small details—the sparkles on a jacket or the shine of a shoe—twinkle through the darkness.

Buscemi received his BFA in studio art from SUNY Cortland in 2021. His work has been presented at galleries including Carl Kostyál in Sicily, Giovanni’s Room in Los Angeles, and Blade Study in New York. In May, he had a solo exhibition, “Blue Star,” at Monti8 in Latina, Italy.

—Arun Kakar

Srijon Chowdhury

B. 1987, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Lives and works in Portland, Oregon.

A giant, gaping mouth is the anchor of “Tapestry,” Srijon Chowdhury’s debut solo exhibition with New York gallery P.P.O.W. Painted across five linen panels that together take up some 30 feet of wall space, its meaty, sprawling lips open onto a scarlet inferno filled with cavorting skeletal figures. The monumental work, Mouth (Divine Dance) (2022), elicits fear in multiple forms: of damnation, yes, but also the day-to-day horrors of being alive in a human body.

Chowdhury’s paintings are striking and dense, laden with references to art history and the artist’s own past work. He frequently paints the body, rendering skin in sinewy swirls. These images are sometimes visceral but also harness moments of tenderness, rest, and natural wonder. For instance, one memorable work in “Tapestry” features an inflamed eye in which the iris is replaced by a tondo of childbirth. In short, the paintings reflect the messy breadth of human experience.

An MFA graduate of the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, Chowdhury has been the subject of solo exhibitions at the Frye Art Museum in Seattle, Foxy Production in New York, Anat Ebgi in Los Angeles, and others. He is represented by P.P.O.W, and runs the exhibition space Chicken Coop Contemporary in Portland, Oregon.

—Olivia Horn

Jess Cochrane

B. 1991, Canberra, Australia. Lives and works in London.

In paintings laden with thick, heavy brushstrokes, Jess Cochrane pays homage to the colors and compositions of Post-Impressionists such as Paul Cézanne, seamlessly blending 19th- and 20th-century painting styles with contemporary subject matter. Photography guides her practice, which draws on reference images of fleeting moments and popular aesthetic trends that she translates to canvas.

The London-based Australian artist was recently featured in a solo exhibition, “It Won’t Last Forever,” at Gillian Jason Gallery in London. Among the works on view was Bowl of Citrus on a Balcony Ledge (2024), a still life through which Cochrane examines ideas of consumption. Here, perfectly ripe oranges serve as a symbol of overindulgence, reflecting the negative influences of social media and digital advertising. Other works include sunny poolside scenes of everyday moments with friends. Dressed in classic triangle bikinis and Matrix-style sunglasses, her painted subjects evoke nostalgia for the Y2K era.

Cochrane studied graphic design at the University of Canberra before pursuing art at the University of Wollongong in Australia. Her work has been featured in both solo and group exhibitions at Rhodes, The Edit Gallery, MK Contemporary LTD, and Gillian Jason Gallery.

—Adeola Gay

Anders Davidsen

B. 1987, Mariagerfjord, Denmark. Lives and works in Knebel, Denmark.

In paintings on linen and jute, Anders Davidsen melds the meditative quality of color field painting with the urgency of fresco. A warm, earthy brown gesso, applied as an undercoat, unifies many of his paintings, bringing a naturalistic quality to the otherworldly patterns and textures that dance across their surfaces. The resulting semi-abstract compositions suggest topographic maps of imaginary landscapes.

The strength of this work caught the attention of GRIMM, which announced its representation of the artist last month. The gallery is hosting Davidsen’s solo show “Sowing in half-light” through October 12th at its Amsterdam location. The exhibition features a series of works that suggest horizons or seascapes—but the main focus is Davidsen’s use of texture. In one work, weaving an ossuary (2024), the appearance of cracks in the painting’s surface contrast with the translucent layers of pigment that seem to hover above it like clouds of smoke. To create these dynamic finishes, the artist applies pigment directly from the tube in thin, dry layers, then scours the surface as it dries. Despite the technical demands and intricacies of his process, Davidsen’s paintings feel expansive and unified.

Davidsen has exhibited in solo shows at ADZ Gallery in Lisbon and online with Painters Painting Paintings, and in group shows at M+B in Los Angeles and Formation Gallery in Copenhagen. He received his BFA from the Danish Royal Academy in Copenhagen.

—Isabelle Sakelaris

Xanthe Somers

B. 1992, ​​Harare, Zimbabwe. Lives and works in Harare and London.

Xanthe Somers’s bright sculptures evoke the traditional functional shapes of ceramics, and turn them on their heads. Her playful, vase-like objects are adorned with sculpted rings and flowers, as well as painted phrases and logos. These works, according to the artist, suggest the cheap, tatty leftovers of Western overconsumption and the eco-colonialist systems that have a deep effect on countries like Zimbabwe, where she is from.

In her current show at Southern Guild in Cape Town, on view through October 31st, Somers presents oversized, vibrant vessels that mimic the effect of woven fibers. In actuality, they are painstakingly hand-coiled by the artist using cranks and stoneware. The exhibition is titled “Invisible Hand” in reference to free market theory—drawing inspiration from domestic crafts, such as basket weaving, that have traditionally been undervalued by Western economics.