Charley Friedman in Miami

MIAMI—Charley Friedman deals with humor—often on a very personal level—in his art, which is never confined to any one style but rather tailored to a particular project’s concept. Friedman, a Brooklyn-based artist with a solo show on view at Miami’s Gallery Diet through March 1, has employed sculpture, photographs, videos, and performances to tweak the art world and push his practice in new directions. His most notorious performance may be Felix, Flowers, Flags & Poems (2002), in which he recycled candy given to him by the Chelsea gallery D’Amelio Terras from a work by Felix Gonzalez-Torres, setting up shop on the sidewalk next to the gallery on Valentine’s Day and hawking the candy (for $1.25 apiece), along with flowers, American flags, and the offer to read love poems to willing participants.

In 1998, Friedman posed for a photograph that resembles the iconic Chuck Close painting Big Self-Portrait (1967–68), creating an homage and a parody at once. Fast forward to 2008, and the Gallery Diet show, "A'Capella," where Friedman touches on his Jewish heritage in a new work, Untitled (Chasid) (2008). The image bares a striking similarity to the Close knock-off, only this time, Friedman has grown out his beard and donned traditional Hasidic attire. In Four Part Memory (2004–08), Friedman’s most ambitious video project to date, he sings the Beatles’ "Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band" a cappella. Recorded over the span of several years, the work shows Friedman performing each part of the song’s arrangement: vocals, guitar, bass, and percussion. Transcending the inherent sight gags, Friedman’s work causes one to pause and reflect on the art world, the use of humor in art, and the artist’s own identity.

Here are four current or upcoming shows Friedman suggests for prime viewing in Miami:

1. Gina Ruggieri: New Work at Kevin Bruk Gallery, through March 31

“Ruggieri is a fantastic painter of living matter who paints meticulous sections of landscapes on Mylar that appear to float on the wall. Her works are lush and beautifully done. This show makes you feel like you’ve stepped into a dreamland.”

2. Beyond Picturopolis, curated by Michelle Weinberg at ArtCenter/South Florida, through February 17

“This group show displays works by three painters—Michelle Weinberg, Neil Bende, and Elisabeth Condon—who love to paint. My only complaint with the show is that each of these artists could have filled the space on their own without any problem. Condon, with her facility and range, is like a time-release pill.”

3. Sean Dack: ECHO/REPEAT at Frederic Snitzer Gallery, through March 3

“Dack messes with the language of photography and digital imaging by chopping up pictures and reformulating them into fresh images. No matter what the ideas behind them are, these are sexy little creatures.”

4. Wendy Wischer at David Castillo Gallery, March 8 through April 5

“This should be a gorgeous, must-see exhibition of mixed-media works—from video to light installations—that play with the Florida landscape.”