On exhibit: Deborah Zlotsky, Ward Jackson, and Yoshiaki Mochizuki

In this post:

DEBORAH ZLOTSKY  at Kathryn Markel Fine Arts, through October 11
WARD JACKSON  at Minus Space, through October 25
YOSHIAKI MOCHIZUKI  at Marlborough Chelsea, through October 11 

Autumn in NY is off to a bountiful start with numerous exhibits featuring the many guises of abstraction. At its most superficial level, the thread that ties these three exhibits together is quite simple: I am enthralled by the work. But digging deeper, each artist reflects a clarity of vision along with a devotion to craft, and each artist's work reflects a distinctive approach to abstraction that incorporates elements of geometric forms.

Deborah Zlotsky: It happened, but not to you (Kathryn Markel Fine Arts,through October 11) features eight knock-out paintings chock full of muscular volumetric forms that are stacked and torqued through space. Zlotsky's constructions appear at once massive and floating, which sometimes twist open to reveal hollowed out interiors. These trapezoidal masses are anchored to one another, yet seem ready to separate and hurtle off with a gentle shove. A dynamic unfolding permeates Zlotsky's paintings, unlike much hard-edged geometric abstraction.

DEBORAH ZLOTSKY    A tricky subject, 2014     48x48 oil on canvas   (image courtesy KMFA)

detail from A tricky subject

 

DEBORAH ZLOTSKY   Mermaid thoughts, 2014   60x72   oil on canvas  (image courtesy KMFA)

detail from Mermaid thoughts

 

DEBORAH ZLOTSKY   The Inundation, 2014    48x48 inches     oil on canvas    (image courtesy KMFA)

detail from The Inundation

Zlotsky's palette is replete with assertive colors and burly forms, combined with fantastical compositions and a painterly approach.  A close examination of the paintings reveals planes painted with subtly modulated hues, as well as surfaces rich with drips and dings--elements that show the history of the making. Additionally, the robust forms are occasionally punctuated by tender pictorial elements (easy to miss from the distance)-- a delicate glass tube in one spot, or a needle-like mass in another

In her statement, Zlotsky states that things ordinary and familiar (from her surroundings or memory) are the starting point for each painting. Through a process that she describes as "accumulation and revision, accidents repeatedly redirect me, blurring my understanding of the differences between accident and intention, memory and history."

To see more work from this exhibit, click here.


Ward Jackson: Black & White Diamonds 1960s (Minus Space, through October 25) focuses  on his black and white, geometric compositions on diamond-shaped canvases and also includes a series of sketchbook pages. In contrast with Zlotsky's colorful and compositionally complex paintings, Jackson's work elevates the power of austerity. The surface of these paintings is unarticulated, consistent with Jackson's overall minimalist approach. Elegantly installed in arrays that reflect pages from Jackson's sketchbooks, these paintings demonstrate his methodical exploration of minimalist compositions working variously with balance, symmetry, and pattern.   All photos in this section, courtesy of Minus Space.

Installation view,   WARD JACKSON Black & White Diamonds 1960s  (photos courtesy of Minus Space)

WARD JACKSON   Interchange V, 1963    34 x 34 inches   acrylic on canvas

WARD JACKSON  Untitled (Studies for Reverse), circa 1963-64     4 x 6 inches    graphite on paper

WARD JACKSON   Untitled, 1966   17x17 inches   acrylic on canvas

Installation view      WARD JACKSON Black & White Diamonds 1960s 

Jackson described his work during the early 1960s (from the press release for the exhibit): "The diamond shape (or square on end) has the meditative power of a mandala and expands in a way that an ordinary square does not, since the measurement of the diameter across the center is wider than any of the outer or peripheral edges."   Additionally, by rotating an inherently stable form and balancing the compositions on the tip, Jackson offers us compositions that are both refined and dynamic.

The inclusion of sketchbook pages is an additional treat because we can see how Jackson conceptualized this series and then selected specific compositions to develop into paintings. 

To see more work from this exhibit, click here.


Yoshiaki Mochizuki: Grey Noise (Marlborough Chelsea, through October 11) is a gem of a show that invites quiet contemplation. Meticulously constructed with many layers of gesso, clay, graphite and palladium leaf, these intimate compositions (several as small as 10.5 x 10.5 inches) offer an indeterminate and ever-changing viewing experience. Several of these pieces appear as a field with hints of an underlying grid, while others are developed with layers of lines that form overlapping planes and simple geometries.

Limited to black, white, gray and silver, the heavily burnished surfaces of these panels appear very matte from the distance. But moving in closer or when viewed from an angle, the surfaces shimmer and reflect innumerable specks of light. Step closer still and you see that the surface is rich with tightly packed incised lines. The areas that had appeared as a dull white actually have a highly polished silvery sheen flecked with bubbles and imperfections.

YOSHIAKI MOCHIZUKI  Untitled, 1/31, 2014   14 x 14 inches    gesso on board, clay, palladium leaf

detail of Untitled, 1/31

YOSHIAKI MOCHIZUKI  Untitled, 6/10/13, 2013   14 x 14 inches    gesso on board, clay, palladium leaf

same panel seen from an angle

YOSHIAKI MOCHIZUKI  Untitled, 7/2, 2014   14 x 14 inches    gesso on board, clay, palladium leaf

The process of layering and polishing, incising the lines, and the repeated reworking of the surface carries through into the experience of viewing Mochizuki's work -- we see one thing, it changes, we look away and it changes once again. 

To see more work from this exhibit, click here.

NYC summer: a selection of group exhibitions

This summer there are numerous group shows in NY galleries featuring abstraction. The work on view spans several generations of artists with varied approaches to abstraction and painting. A few weeks ago, I wrote about the Paintings on Paper exhibition at David Zwirner, which you can read here. With so much to look at (and much already written about), what follows are a few highlights from several of these exhibits. 

Eccentric Abstraction /  Frosch & Portmann  click on gallery name to see more of the exhibit

Curated by Bill Weiss, this gem of a show includes work by David Hayward, Leslie Wayne, Mamie Holst, Richard Allen Morris and Bill Weiss.  This exhibit is up through August 3. I was particularly struck by the rich physicality of the paintings by three of the artists. 

The work of Leslie Wayne and Richard Allen Morris blur the distinctions between painting and sculpture.

LESLIE WAYNE   Paint/Rag #4, 2014  oil on panel  16 x 12 x 4

close up view:  LESLIE WAYNE  One Big Love #26, 2009   oil on panel  11-1/2 x 13-1/4 x 2

RICHARD ALLEN MORRIS  (left to right)  History, 2010, Venus, 2010, Point of View, 2010   acrylic & patch & paint on canvas    10 x 8"

close up view:  RICHARD ALLEN MORRIS   Point of View, 2010   acrylic & patch & paint on canvas   10 x 8"

Douglas Florian often works on found plywood and subjects the painted surface to additional gouging, imbuing a sense of history to his paintings.

DOUGLAS FLORIAN   Bloomsday Way, 2011-2012   31 x 18 3/4   oil on wood

close up view of Bloomsday Way

 
Starting Out: 9 Abstract Painters 1958 - 1971 /   Tibor de Nagy   click on gallery name to see more of the exhibit
These exhibit  (up through August 1) includes work of nine artists who were considered part of the second-generation of NY abstract painters.  You can read a fine review of the exhibit by Marcia Yerman by clicking here. 

Surprisingly, the first painting you see upon entering the gallery is the work of Jane Freilicher, who moved on to landscape and representational work. 

 

JANE FREILICHER   Untitled Abstraction c. 1960    49 x 50"   oil on canvas

 I was also drawn to the paintings by Edward Avedisian and Paul Feeley.

EDWARD AVEDISIAN   Normal Love #1, 1963    67-1/4 x 67-1/2"    liquitex on canvas

PAUL FEELEY    Trajan, 1960    69 x 46"   oil-based enamel on canvas

Summer Invitational /  Elizabeth Harris     click on gallery name to see more of the exhibit
The 2014 summer invitation featured work by Rich Klauber, Joanne Mattera, Paul Mogensen, Gary Peter, and Sarah Walker.  Color, geometry, and layered space each had a place in this exhibit.

JOANNE MATTERA   Chromatic Geometry 21, 2014    12 x 12"   encaustic on panel

RICK KLAUBER, Editor, 2013    46 x 16"  acrylic on cedar shims

 Color as Structure /  McKenzie Fine Art    click on gallery name to see more of the exhibit
This splendid exhibit (up through August 1) features work by 16 artists.  The gallery press release details the theme: "Color as Structure" examines the ways artists use deliberate color choices to create sculptural or architectonic space in their work as well as exploring aspects of weight, movement, rhythm, light and optical vibration." 

Below are several of the standout pieces that fit that description beautifully.

DEBORAH ZLOTSKY   Indoor Voice, 2013   20 x 16"  oil on canvas

MARTHA CLIPPINGER  Converge, 2012   17 x 10-1/2 x 2"   acrylic and oil on wood

ELISE FERGUSON   NW, bold, 2014   24 x 24"   pigmented plaster on mdf