| The New York Optimist September 2008 |
| September 11th Chelsea Gallery Crawl by Stephan Fowlkes Since this week was relatively quiet opening-wise, possibly due to its being the 11th, I had the opportunity to review some of the shows I’d missed last week, and again I found further supporting evidence that painting is re-asserting itself, re-defining itself, and the gallerists are happy to take up the cause. From hyper-realism to geometric abstraction to metaphysical expressionism, it was all here in Chelsea. My top pick for must-see shows currently up would have to be Amy Ellingson’s “Recursios” at Charles Cowles Gallery. These oil and encaustic paintings of repeating and layered loosely geometric patterns suck you in...there is a depth, both illusory and psychologically, which Ellingson has meticulously rendered in the seductive, alluring medium of encaustic, heightened by her dynamic use of color to emphasize the depth of these paintings. I strongly recommend you don’t miss this show! “Recursions” Amy Ellingson at Charles Cowles 537 W. 24th Street September 2-October 4, 2008 |
| Then there were the slightly more reductive works of Joanne Freeeman and Kim Uchiyama at Lohin Geduld Gallery. Freeman’s hard-edged abstractions, often on irregularily shaped panels almost have the feel of super-imposed lettering, fragmented enough to be illegible, leaving the viewer struggling to make sense of the information being presented. Uchiyama’s colorful horizontal stripe paintings are more meditative, as the stripes of varying widths stack a wide palette of vibrant colors one atop the other. “Recent Works” Joanne Freeman and Kim Uchiyama at Lohin Geduld Gallery 531 W. 25th Street September 11-October 11, 2008 |
| Joanne Freeman Electra, 2008 |
| Kim Uchiyama Untitled, 2008 |
| And stripes may not only be all the rage on the fashion runways this Fall, as there are more--vertical this time--in Nicole Charbonnet’s “Enchanted Forest” at Winston Wachter Fine Art. in this group of paintings, Charbonnet balances some animal paintings with the more purely abstract stripe paintings, all alluging to some mystical forest of the imagination. Her surfaces are more worked than Uchiyama’s stripes... more weathered and manipulated, a less immediate process, resulting in a successful, aged feeling. There are even the stripes of her zebra, to integrate the two themes in this show. Furthermore, there are many canvasses with writing across them, integrated to the point of near-illegibility, forcing the viewer to concentrate and navigate the canvases with greater attention than the more reductive works. Her stripe series is called “Erased Riley,” making historic reference both to Brigit Riley’s signature stripes and to Rauschenberg’s “Erased DeKooning” I like both the concept and the outcome of her process. “Enchanted Forest” Nicole Charbonnet at Winston Wachter Fine Art 530 W. 25th Street September 11-October 11, 2008 |
| Then, in the spirit of Pat Steir, though with a more Eastern context, there were Hiroshi Senju’s loose waterfalls, echoing the traditions of the Nihonga School and embracing contemporary innovations. His large falls, either white on black or incandescent blue, green, orange, red or yellow are all subject to the lighting of the show, periodically alternating between the incandescent light and a black light, which present two remarkably different experiences when viewing the works, adding a level of complexity and a sort of yin- yang quality to these mesmerizing, meditative, atmospheric paintings. Definately a nice twist! “Day Falls/ Night Falls” Hiroshi Senju at Sundaram tagore Gallery 547 W. 27th Street (2nd floor) September 11-? 2008 |
| Then, for a complete 180 degree turn in style, scale and content, there were the “Radsides” by Mike Bayne at Morgan Lehman. These small, hyper-realist works at first glance come across as photographs of desolate scenes of suburban landscapes and places, with a sense of isolation. It is Bayne’s remarkable ability to manipulate and control his materials and his discerning eye when it comes to subject matter that combine to present such meticulously rendered, emotionally and psychologically impactive atmospheres within the space as small as 4” x 6” and no larger than 16” x 20”. Another must-see, though bring your magnifying glass for greater enjoyment! “Roadsides” Mike Bayne at Morgan Lehman 317 Tenth Avenue September 11-October 4, 2008 |
| Mike Bayne Salvation 6 x 4 in. Oil on panel |
| Mike Bayne Crista 1 6 x 4 in. Oil on panel |
| And just so you don’t think I’m playing favorites, let me address some of the sculpture out there. As has become apparent, the art scene seems to be grappling with current identity issues. The anything goes sensibility that embraced piles of garbage and and coat hooks as art seems to be re-evaluating its stance, and in so-doing, seems to be embracing certain aspects from the past. Let’s first address Minimalism: there is a timeless, appealing aesthetic sensibility when viewing anything conscientiously and precisely arranged, reducet to pattern and materiality. Two shows that strongly support this are John McCracken at David Zwirner and Carl Andre at Paula Cooper. McCracken, in this new body of work, relies on his “objects leaning against the wall” motif to present us with several series of colorfully and exquisitely finished wooden, fabricated “beams” in groups, upright, leaning against the wall. The dimensions differ from his older, familiar “planks” and bring to mind Bernar Venet’s “Indeterminate Lines,” though with a precise presentation relying almost as much on the space between the pieces as on the objects themselves. And again, his lucid understanding and use of color is clearly apparent in these seductive installations. Just don’t bump into them! John McCracken at David Zwirner 533 W. 19th Street September 11-October 18, 2008 |
| Again, with Carl Andre, we find precise, geometric installations constructed from uniform rectangular blocks of untreated western red cedar, filling the gallery floor. “Placing these timbers upright, Andre has delineated quadrilateral perimeters in an increasing numerical progression,” something that is not necessarily discernible at first, initially skewing the viewer’s perspective of the space. “This rational ordering system made visible in cedar wood animates the artist’s long-held interest in the relationship between the material, physical world and the theoretical world. “Western Red Cedar” Carl Andre at Paula Cooper Gallery 534 W. 21st Street September 6-October 11, 2008 |
And for some more meticulous geometry, though of a conceptual nature, Keith Tyson’ s new sculptures are also a must-see. These works are fabricated based on the outcome of a system of chance, where the throw of dice dictate the shape and color of each work. Using dice, Tyson embraces chance as his primary medium. Once all aspects of the pieces have been decided by the throw of the dice, relying on preset parameters, the results were then sent to the gallery where the pieces were fabricated (meticulously--word of the week) in aluminum and plastic, presenting the viewer with a beautiful dialogue between chaos and order, randomness and control. “Fractal Dice” (An algorithm written by the artist determines what will be on view in this new exhibition.) Keith Tyson at Pace Wildenstein 545 W. 22nd Street September 5-October 4, 2008 |
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