William Eckhardt Kohler reviews the exhibition Sangram Majumdar: Peel at Steven Harvey Fine Art Projects, New York, on view through December 22, 2013.

Kohler writes that "many of the paintings read, at least initially, more abstract than representational. The paintings are seductive sensual and luscious, evincing a skill and sensitivity that few painters even get close to manifesting. At the same time they hold the viewer at a distance, raising more questions than they answer. While the paintings frustrate, complicate and undermine pictorial expectation, they also bring deep satisfaction in reflections, openings and bursts of revelation. In eluding the obvious Majumdar often utilizes blockages, obfuscations and disruptions, in the process testing how far one can push perceptual painting and improvisation… In an age when so much painting seems to be moving towards simplification, Majumdar asks us to accept the challenge of extended and thoughtful looking."