Long Story Short is proud to present The Promise of Blue, a solo exhibition by Dorian Cohen, on view through November 17, 2024, at 54E Henry St, New York.
This exhibition features eleven of Cohen’s paintings, each exploring the intimate and social stories within urban life. His works display layered, interconnected sequences that seamlessly blend moments of quiet reflection with the vibrant energy of the city—a recurring theme in his art, rendered with a sense of both enchantment and subtle playfulness.
Cohen’s mastery of detail, color, and light shines in pieces like Le Jardin de la Marguerite and Le Jardin Albert Kahn. These serene landscapes evoke a sense of peaceful retreat, inviting calm reflection. In his urban scenes, Cohen blends literary and cinematic influences with carefully framed compositions and evocative lighting that build subtle narrative tension. Works such as Au Quai de Jemmapes and the untitled kitchen scene transform everyday moments into reflections on the beauty of the mundane, encouraging viewers to appreciate the simple grace found in daily routines.
In The Promise of Blue, Cohen explores the interplay between landscape and intimacy across a spectrum of themes—some dark, others rejuvenating. Paintings like Mère et Fils (Mother and Son) and the Untitled couple in bed capture profound emotional connections. From the delicate bonds between family members to the solitude of urban life, Cohen’s narratives, expressed through shades of blue, evoke melancholic cinematic moods that reveal the inner lives of his figures. These blues intensify unspoken vulnerabilities, quiet embarrassments, and the ties that bind us, echoing the rain-washed skies over lush, rejuvenated gardens. The Promise of Blue invites us to pause, reflect, and connect with the deeper truths of what it means to be alive.
