Emily Nathan reviews the exhibition Snapshot: Painters and Photography, Bonnard to Vuillard, on view at the Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. through May 6, 2012. Nathan writes: "while the two mediums have their parallels -- Bonnard's nude photos of his model and future wife Marthe are clearly echoed in many of his painted compositions, for instance
Painter Frank Bowling discusses his work in a new video filmed in his studio. Bowling remarks: "In my youth I tended to look at the tragic side of human behavior an try and reflect that in my work, but gradually, as I became more involved in the making of paintings, I realized that one of
Frank Hobbs transcribes excerpts from a newly posted video on the painter Rackstraw Downes. Hobbs quotes Downes: "When I… started painting from observation, one of the reasons was that I didn’t want to be so damn self-conscious about my paintings… Why not just look at something and paint it the way it is? Plop! And
Sam Cornish visits the London studio of painter Albert Irvin. Cornish notes that "Instead of describing objects (even abstract objects) the elements of [Irvin's] paintings often suggest, to me at any rate, an arrival or a bringing to attention... There is perhaps something theatrical about the way in which Irvin's marks address the viewer, their
Jonathan Beer interviews painter Tomory Dodge about his work and process. Dodge remarks: "I like the formal tension that comes from the inclusion of different approaches to painting on one surface. But I think a lot of that tension comes from my own doubt in the adequacy of any single approach or system of painting.
Mario Naves blogs about the work of painter Tom Goldenberg. Naves writes that "It's as if Goldenberg found his way back to the land through the examples set by Jackson Pollock and Clyfford Still. Goldenberg knows that influence is contrary and fluid. As a painter, he thrives on its surprising pliability. You'd best look elsewhere
Jonathan Wilson reviews the exhibition Avigdor Arikha: Works from the Estate at Marlborough Gallery, New York, on view through April 21, 2012. The post also includes an extensive interview with Noga Arikha, the artist's daughter. Wilson writes: "Its tempting to view Arikha’s work as that of a gorgeous throwback, as Michael Kimmelman parsed it a
Chloe Wyma interviews painter Mira Schor on the occasion of the exhibition Mira Schor: Voice and Speech at Marvelli Gallery, New York, on view through April 28, 2012. Asked about scale in painting Schor replies: "Modest paintings don't necessarily have to be small, and small paintings are not necessarily modest. I'm advocating for a kind
Maria Calandra visits the studio of painter Katherine Bradford. Calandra notes that Bradford's paintings "ask the viewer to let go. They allow for connections to be made between the compelling imagery and space within them freely and without a push from any kind of direct narrative. Like reading a poem that never overtly connotes its
Elana Hagler interviews painter Gillian Pederson-Krag about her work. Asked about narrative, Pederson-Krag notes: "For me, the notion of the narrative just refers to content in general, my narrative is the way I answer the question 'what shall I paint?' This is not really as straightforward a question as it seems, though, it has many
James Kalm creates an in depth to of video tour of paintings by Forrest Bess recently on view at Christie's and at the Whitney Biennial, on view through May 27, 2012. Kalm's video includes fantastic close-ups of Bess' paintings. He notes that Bess is "one of the most mythic and eccentric American painters of the
Paintings shouldn't simply be seen, they should change the viewer, suspend him or her in an altered moment. A recent visit to exhibitions by Adolph Gottlieb, Ron Gorchov, and Douglas Florian proved one's sense of time and place can, indeed, be altered by a colored surface. Adolph Gottlieb: Gravity, Suspension, Motion is on view at
Piri Halasz reviews works by Lauren Olitski, Susan Roth, and Ann Walsh, on view in the exhibition Color & Edge at Sideshow Gallery, New York through May 6, 2012. Halasz writes that "all three, in early stages of their development, were influenced by the color & facture of Jules Olitski. It is a measure of
Thomas Micchelli writes about Rembrandt's Self-Portrait from Kenwood House, London, on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York through May 20, 2012. Micchelli notes: "This painting is one of the artist's richest and most profound self-portraits, rendered in earth tones softly illuminated by raking, flaxen light. Rembrandt, who would live for only three
Deven Golden reviews the exhibition Harriet Korman: New Paintings at Lennon Weinberg, Inc., New York, on view through April 14, 2012. Golden notes a "curious element to these artworks that may at first elude notice, so infrequently is it a factor: they are 100% flat. In his famous 1955 essay 'Modernist Painting', Clement Greenberg suggested
Dr Janet McKenzie reviews the exhibition Alan Davie: Works on Paper at Gimpel Fils, London, on view through April 21, 2012. McKenzie writes that the exhibition "demonstrates the unique style and epic quality; [Davie] has the power to mystify his audience. Here we see the great importance of drawing to his artistic identity. Not only
Robert C. Morgan reviews the exhibition Ron Gorchov at Cheim & Read, New York, on view through April 28. 2012. Morgan writes that Gorchov "knows where he is going without imposing his intentions – not even on himself. I would say Gorchov is as open and clear as any painter I have meant. His idea
Caleb De Jong reviews an exhibition of new paintings by Jacqueline Humphries at Greene Naftali, New York, on view through April 28, 2012. De Jong writes: "Splayed outwards, Humphries centripetal compositions reference nature in their all over, structurally organic chemistry. Lacking clear chromatic referents to nature, Humphries' paintings instead operate independently of a clear representational
With the work of Abstract Expressionist Charles Seliger (1926-2009) in mind, Addison Parks considers "that the painting is something that happens through the very act of painting, and not the result of some preconceived image that through careful effort produces the desired result. What we are talking about is the painting that evolves, changes, even
Donald Kuspit reviews the exhibition William Bailey at Betty Cuningham Gallery, New York, on view through May 12, 2012. Kuspit writes that Bailey's "objects [are] distilled to their timeless essence, suggesting that they are sort of hallucinatory things in themselves -- Platonically pure ideas that Bailey has hallucinated, projections of his imaginative mind's eye, and