John Goodrich reviews In the Studio: Paintings, curated by John Elderfield, at Gagosian Gallery, New York, on view through April 18, 2015.

Goodrich writes: "In the Studio may be a rambling journey, but as [curator John] Elderfield writes, it’s intended not as a survey but as a speculative 'essay on the history of studio painting.' It gratifies as such, its thesis illuminated by major and lesser works alike. One could, however, draw a different argument from the selection of work — that what it really illuminates is the enduring powers of great painting in all its guises. 'Artistic greatness' may sound quaint in 2015, but how else to describe the one-in-a-million eloquence, courage, generosity, and curiosity expressed in painting’s most basic elements? "