Jo Messer’s paintings push the tradition of classic nude portraiture to explore the many potentials of the genre, from the erotic to the whimsical. Her chromatic, almost abstract figures of women extend beyond the borders of the canvas, offering new perspectives on sexuality and the human body. Messer’s unique style explores painting’s full potential while playing with the historical and conceptual underpinnings of the medium. Jo Messer received her BFA from the Cooper Union in 2014 and her MFA from Yale University in 2017.
In the past two years, Messer’s works have entered numerous public collections such as Rubell Museum, Miami, FL; The Hill Foundation, New York, NY; The Bunker, Palm Beach, FL.
Solo Exhibition At A Major Institution
2023
EAT ME, 56 Henry, New York, NY 2022
2022
Jo Messer, Rubell Museum, Miami, FL
Whale Tail, The Ranch, Montauk, NY
2021
Knees to Navel, 56 HENRY, New York, NY
2020
100 Days of Solitude: Pandemic Paintings by Josephine Messer, OOPS New York, NY
Group Exhibition At A Major Institution
2023
HORIZONS, Sow & Tailor Hong Kong pop up at Woaw Gallery, Hong Kong, CN
2022
Person(a), Venus over Manhattan, New York, NY
Through a Glass, Darkly, Carl Kostyál, curated by Katharine Kostyál, Milan, Italy
Emotional Intelligence, Polina Berlin Gallery, New York, NY
I Do My Own Stunts, Spazio Amanita, Los Angeles, CA
2021
Women in Paris, Hussenot, Paris, France
Show Me Your Pony, One Trick Pony, Los Angeles, CA
Go Figure!, Spruth Magers, Berlin, Germany
The Long Winter, curated by Kenny Schacter, Maloja, Switzerland 2020
Al Fresco, New Release Gallery, New York, NY NADA, 56 HENRY, New York, NY
2019
Felix Art Fair, Los Angeles, CA
2017
4 Artists, Fredericks & Freiser Gallery, New York, NY
A Sag, Harbored, Western Exhibitions, Chicago, IL
Yale MFA New Release Gallery, New York, NY
Yale MFA Thesis Show, New Haven, CT
2016
Sphere Spaces, The Study, New Haven, CT
Honestly Bodily, SWS Pop-Up, New York, NY
2015
Inside, Fish Bar, New York, NY
2014
The Last Brucennial, Bruce High Quality Foundation, New York, NY
A Very Warm House, Ferro Strouse Gallery, New York, NY
The Retrospective of S, Fredericks & Freiser Gallery, New York, NY
Born Yesterday, The Cooper Union, New York, NY
Awards
2013 Residency, Yale Norfolk Summer Art School, Norfolk, CT
Education
2017 MFA, Yale University, New Haven, CT
2014 BFA, Cooper Union, New York, NY
2013 Residency, Yale Norfolk Summer Art School, Norfolk, CT
