Over the course of their more than 30-year friendship, Tony Shafrazi and Enrico Navarra often thought about organizing a joint exhibition, but both being brimming with activity, they never found the time. It is therefore with great emotion that Doriano Navarra now welcomes to Galerie 75 Faubourg this exhibition presented by Tony Shafrazi / Gallery Without Walls and Galerie Enrico Navarra.

The title Resonance underline the striking result of the combination of multiple elements – in music, painting and among people, with a special emphasis on the splendor and pleasure of jazz, as can be seen in the concentrated expression of Miles Davis playing the trumpet (Sketches of Miles [all works: 2024]), the vibrant representation of John Coltrane with two saxophones (Soprano and Tenor), and the dense crowd of Tennessee teenagers blowing into various brass instruments (The Aristocrat of Bands).

One of the largest canvases in the exhibition, Players of the Horn, pays tribute to Jean-Michel Basquiat's 1983 Horn Players. Both paintings depict jazz legends Charlie Parker playing the saxophone and Dizzy Gillespie playing the trumpet. In Deener’s work, the musicians are loosely depicted in pastel suits, while the abstract background of dark washes evokes the more dreamlike and emotive world of music. For Deener, the oft-repeated image of blowing into a horn represents a call to social, political, and spiritual awareness.

Other works in the exhibition are more explicitly linked to the artist's interest in afrofuturism, notably Statuesque , a majestic painting depicting the head and elongated neck of a mannequin in front of sumptuous cadmium red curtains. Sonic Salute similarly shows the long neck of a mannequin wearing sunglasses and long teal gloves, whose angular silhouette is reminiscent of Amedeo Modigliani. In both cases, the artist modified the source images using Photoshop to create her preferred compositions. The sheen of the models« skin and the length of their necks evoke the dignity and pride of heads held high. Like the other works in this exhibition, Statuesque and Sonic Salute embody an optimistic and confident look toward the future—a visualization of the world that Deener desires to manifest.

Brandon Deener (born in Memphis, Tennessee, 1982) has had solo exhibitions at Simchowitz Gallery (Los Angeles), Jac Forbes Gallery (Los Angeles), A Hug from the Artworld (New York), and Gallery One (Fort Lauderdale), among others. His paintings have been featured in publications such as The Guardian, Artlyst, Culture Is Free, Sugarcane, and Art of Choice. Deener’s works are included in museum and institutional collections such as the Amorepacific Corporation, The Hall Foundation, The Crocker Art Museum, The Fairfield University Art Museum, and in the personal collections of Carmelo Anthony, Ingrid Best, Hebru Brantley, Jaha Johnson, Bruno Mars, Ayesha Selden, and Usher.

The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated 120-page monograph designed by Sébastien Moreu.