Altoon Sultan vists two exhibitions of abstract painting: Painting Advanced at Edward Thorp Gallery (through April 20) and Andrew Masullo at Mary Boone Gallery (through April 27, 2013).

The two shows, Sultan writes, "got me thinking about how important the quality of paint was to me: paint itself, how it looks, how it works, how each artist uses it." In the work of Masullo, she finds that "the images are enchanting, but for me the love of paint is missing," while the five painters work on view at Edward Thorp each have "a very different approach to image and materials, each with a rich and sensuous use of paint."