Gabriele Grones is a painter and visual artist whose artistic research is focused on the relationship that we establish with reality through the dialogue with the expressive codes of art history. His series of paintings in oil on canvas are mainly centered around specific subjects, such as natural details, figures or compositions. The details of plants and grass are carefully investigated from a close point of view, giving shape to every feature that evokes the complexity of reality. The portrait series are based on classical iconological references and often depict the same subjects in slightly different poses and light conditions in an obsessive representation mirroring the atmospheres of the early Flemish portraiture and metaphysical painting. For certain projects, Grones creates installations of his own works where the relationships between the different paintings propose unexpected connections capable of establishing a dialogue among apparently unrelated elements. This operation generates different meanings that calls to mind a symbolic analysis of our experience.
Grones took part in two editions of the Venice Biennale: Atelier Aperti in 2005 and Lo Stato dell’Arte – Art Academies Pavilion in 2011. Recent solo exhibitions in 2022 include Conversazioni at Ca’ Pesaro – Museum of Modern Art (Venice) and Boccanera Gallery (Trento/Milan). Other venues that Grones has exhibited include: National Portrait Gallery (London); Royal Society of Painters (London); MEAM Museum (Barcelona); MART Museum (Rovereto); Palazzo Fulcis Museum (Belluno); Fort Wayne Museum (Fort Wayne); Museum of Arts (Cluj-Napoca), National Museum of Fine Arts (Valletta); Volkskunstmuseum (Innsbruck).
He lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. ...
Founded in 2020 by Alice Demoëte and Chris Cerny, IRL Gallery is a contemporary art gallery located at 86 Walker Street in Tribeca, New York. The gallery reflects a transnational perspective shaped by movement, cultural exchange, and a sustained commitment to material inquiry and thoughtful presentation.
Originally based in Greenpoint, Brooklyn—with early programming spanning exhibitions and performances across art, design, and sound—IRL later operated in Chinatown/Two Bridges before establishing its current Tribeca space. Across these contexts, the gallery has maintained a focus on artists whose practices engage process, form, and experimentation within contemporary visual culture.
Positioned at the intersection of art and design, IRL presents a dynamic program of exhibitions, fair projects, and collaborations dedicated to supporting emerging and distinctive voices in contemporary art. The gallery is recognized for championing artists early in their careers, often introducing them to New York audiences for the first time, and offering collectors the opportunity to engage with important work at a formative stage.
Woman- and immigrant-owned, IRL Gallery remains grounded in an international vision—one that values cross-disciplinary dialogue, material innovation, and the evolving conditions of display and exchange. ...
