Roberta Smith reviews paintings by Sally Michel at D. Wigmore Fine Art, New York, on view through February 13, 2016.

Smith writes: "This excellent exhibition sheds needed light, presenting about 30 of Michel’s paintings from the 1950s… Mostly landscapes, they are clumsier but also more intense, less Olympian than [husband Milton] Avery’s works. They tend to be smaller and richer in color, which compresses their force. But most important, Michel dissented from her husband’s spare use of paint applied in thin washes of color (which presaged stain painting). Her mountain and lake views are actively worked in contrasting textures and patterns."