Norman Bluhm: Reconciling Painting
Raphael Rubinstein blogs about the need for a reappraisal of Norman Bluhm's work and his impact on painting in the 20th century. Rubinstein writes that Bluhm "knew that he would finally arrive at an approach that combined his early architectural training, his debt to Abstract Expressionism, and his passion for old masters. But if he […]
Anj Smith: Flowering of Phantoms
Nadiah Fellah reviews the exhibition Anj Smith: The Flowering of Phantoms at Hauser & Wirth, New York, on view through February 23, 2012. Fellah writes that Smith's "paintings are at once radical explorations of identity and sexuality, fused with a painting practice that has its roots in a fifteenth-century aesthetic and technique, a striking contrast […]
Wolfgang Paalen: Forgotten Surrealist
Annette Leddy blogs about painter Wolfgang Paalen, a member of the Dyn Circle of Surrealists, on the occasion of the exhibition Farewell to Surrealism: The Dyn Circle in Mexico at the Getty Museum, on view through February 17, 2013. Leddy writes that "He brought his writings, his artistic solutions, and his considerable erudition about First […]
Angela Dufresne: Interview
Jacquelyn Gleisner interviews painter Angela Dufresne about her work. Dufresne remarks: "I am trying to connect with images in reverence, however bastardized that reverence may be. It’s quite perverse, usually. How I interpret this dialog with history is to not make it falsely dry or sweet and not pretend that perception and the given narrative […]
On Being a ‘Lady’ Painter
Mira Schor blogs about the exhibition To Be a Lady: Forty-five Women in the Arts, curated by Jason Andrew, at at 1285 Avenue of the Americas Gallery, New York, on view through March 22, 2013. Schor writes: "I figure that since the show is divided into two parts, installed along two separate sections of the […]
Jason Karolak @ McKenzie Fine Art
Caleb De Jong reviews an exhibition of paintings by Jason Karolak at McKenzie Fine Art Inc., New York, on view through March 17, 2013. De Jong writes: "Space is a metaphor for our lived environment in Jason Karolak’s first solo exhibition at Lower East Side’s McKenzie Fine Art Inc. Pictorial distance is defined by Karolak […]
Mario Correa: In Conversation
An extended correspondence between Geoff Tuck and painter Mario Correa on the occasion of Correa's recent exhibition at Redling Fine Art, Los Angeles. Correa remarks: "Though much of my recent work has utilized print making techniques, I don’t have any training or expertise in printmaking; what I like about it is it’s physicality (I print […]
Late Klee @ the Met
K. Shahi blogs about the exhibition Late Klee at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, on view through February 24, 2013. Shahi writes: "In 1936, Klee was diagnosed with scleroderma, a chronic systemic autoimmune disease. Knowing that he was nearing the end of his life, Klee’s work took on a renewed sense of urgency. […]
Kyle Staver: In Conversation
Jennifer Samet talks with painter Kyle Staver about her work, Facebook debates, and late Renoir. Staver remarks: "When I first started painting, with personal subject matter, I wanted to tell you what it was like to be alive, and to be Kyle Staver. I thought, I will paint about the most important events of my […]
Rudolf de Crignis @ Berkeley Art Museum
Kenneth Baker reviews an exhibition of paintings by Rudolf de Crignis at the Berkeley Art Museum, on view through May 5, 2013. Baker writes: "Canvases in various hues of blue and gray, plus some very low-definition drawings, sparsely fill the walls of two large galleries. The paintings' differences in size, hue and shape at first […]
Amy Lincoln: Interview
Jen Galatioto interviews painter Amy Lincoln on the occasion of the exhibition Amy Lincoln: Plants, Portraits, and a Distant View at Projekt 722, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on view through February 24, 2013. Lincoln comments: "I like to have a bit of a sense of humor with some of the imagery in my paintings. The whole idea […]
Lee Bontecou: Defying Categories
A blog post considering the enduring individuality of Lee Bontecou. "It is not all about brute sentiments in Lee Bontecou’s work in the 60s. Her assemblage pieces are never too mechanic to take on the look of manufactured goods. These are hand-crafted objects recalling structures that can be found both in the natural and industrial […]
Jonathan Allmaier: Painting-Culture
Painter's Bread
Michael Rutherford talks to painter Jonathan Allmaier about his work. Allmaier comments: "I think the key to letting the paintings make themselves is to regard the materials, along with their contingent circumstances (and it’s silly to think of circumstances as separable from an object anyway) as mental states, without distinction from a particular physical state. […]
Matthew Watson: Personal Exchanges
Austin Considine reviews the exhibition Matthew Watson: Commission | Barter | For Sale at Joe Sheftel Gallery, New York, on view through February 24, 2013. Considine writes: "For an artist to paint his professional circle might seem a bit cynical or wearisome in lesser hands. But the images' layers of commercial transparency add fresh complexity. […]
Todd Kelly: In Conversation
Matthew Bourbon talks with painter Todd Kelly on the occasion of the exhibition Todd Kelly: My Own Personal Rebus at Asya Geisberg Gallery, New York that runs through March 9, 2013 Kelly remarks: "I like the way a still life painting presents a group of objects, each object taking on new importance by its presentation […]
John David Wissler: Interview
Larry Groff interviews painter John David Wissler about his work and plein-air painting. Wissler comments: "I believe painting from life will always take me down unexpected roads, both literally and figuratively. Nature is full of surprise and change, it is never the same. I hope I never impose my habits on it. “Getting it right” […]
Lisa Adams: Interview
Julia Schwartz interviews painter Lisa Adams about her work. Adams comments: "I usually work off of visions—almost like hallucinations. Sometimes the visions come in multiples but usually they appear one at a time. I go with that image, make a quick thumbnail sketch and work out from there, adding to and/or making modifications. I also […]
Painting in India after Independence
Greg Cook reviews the exhibition Midnight to the Boom: Painting in India after Independence at the Peabody Essex Museum, MA, on view through April 21, 2013. Cook writes that the work in the exhibition "doesn’t snap neatly into the mainline Western Modernist narrative of the artists of Paris and New York pushing toward ever greater […]
Patrick Howlett @ Susan Hobbs Gallery
Robert Linsley blogs about an exhibition of paintings by Patrick Howlett recently on view at Susan Hobbs Gallery, Toronto, Canada. Linsley writes: "Howlett’s line is very Klee-like in that it thinks as it moves, and probably the most important effect of the show for me was that it pushed me further off my position on […]
Linda Francis: In Conversation
Ben La Rocco interviews painter Linda Francis on the occasion of the upcoming exhibition Linda Francis: We Can Build You at Minus Space, Brooklyn, on view from February 15 – March 23, 2013. Asked about her newest work, Francis comments: "I digitize the images then I see all this other stuff happening on the computer—fantastic—and […]