David Ambrose reviews Michael Berryhill: a window, adore at Kate Werble Gallery and Evan Nesbit: Cellophane Grip at Van Doren Waxter Gallery (both on view through through October 28, 2017).

Ambrose writes: “… each artist tries to thread the needle of contemporary painting: Berryhill working diligently on top of the threads, while Nesbit works from behind in the spaces between them.” Berryhill’s paintings, Ambrose notes, “virtually cauterizes his paint to the canvas by pushing so hard on the surface (both with a brush or a straightedge razor scraper) that it feels like the striking of a match head on a coarse surface. He pushes, abrades, glazes and dusts his marks into the ground, creating memories that surround each form like a mist.” Nesbit, Ambrose writes, “explores the viscosity of his paint in a manner completely counter to Berryhill’s approach. Nesbit avoids the direct contact with his forward facing painting surface. He works instead in reverse, on the verso side of his material using a squeegee…”