James Panero blogs about an exhibition of works by Cathy Nan Quinlan and Kurt Hoffman at Valentine Gallery, New York, on view through June 24, 2012.

Panero notes: "Ms. Quinlan starts with Giorgio Morandi's iconic etchings and recasts them in oil, painting her own hatch-marks. The work has an intimate, cool feel, with unexpected colors in place of Morandi's black and white… [Hoffman's] landscapes might border on chinoiserie, but the spare beauty of 'Japanese Maple' (2010) rises above pastiche with its simple beauty."