Kellyann Burns and Siri Berg: Two approaches to geometric abstraction

It is of course not news that there has always been great diversity within the arena of geometric abstraction. Informed by the work of Mondrian and Malevich, generations of painters and sculptors have worked with the vocabulary of geometric shapes to convey their ideas about spatial relationships and color, as well as notions of time and spirituality. While some artists within this tradition have chosen to remove evidence of the making (creating uninflected surfaces with hard-edged forms), others have partnered geometry with lush and more painterly approaches. Some artists developed pattern-based systems for developing their compositions, while others have relied on intuition in developing their ideas. The work ranges in scale from intimate to monumental and may present as cerebral or celebratory. Clearly, the universe of geometric abstraction  encompasses a wide range of expressive possibilities.

Two exhibits currently on view in Lower East Side galleries offer a glimpse of different approaches within the realm of geometric abstraction and make evident the limits of trying to define this tradition in simple terms. At the end of the post are links to additional resources about geometric abstraction.


KELLYANN BURNS     [McKenzie Fine Art through February 8] 
In an exhibit of approximately twenty paintings (completed in 2013-2014), Burns offers boldly hued, hard-edged abstraction imbued with complex history. She incorporates a variety of geometric forms into compositions with diverse spatial implications. The exhibit features several groupings of intimately sized paintings (10 x 8") as well as larger pieces (up to 60 x 60"). While each painting has been sanded to a smooth finish, its surface has richness and depth. Large areas of the surface are matte, while other areas are glossy. A close viewing often reveals underlayers that have been exposed by the repeated sanding. The edges of the paintings are uneven and rich with accumulated layers of paint, another way that Burns shares some of the history of the making.   Images courtesy McKenzie Fine Art.

KELLYANN BURNS   3:18 PM 9/22/14, 2014    Oil on alu-dibond    60 x 60"

KELLYANN BURNS   11:22 AM  5/22/13, 2013    Oil on alu-dibond    40 x 30"

KELLYANN BURNS   2:09 PM  2/14/14, 2014    Oil on alu-dibond    48 x 48"

KELLYANN BURNS   12:40 AM  9/18/14, 2014    Oil on alu-dibond    10 x 8"

KELLYANN BURNS   10:42 AM  9/16/14, 2014    Oil on alu-dibond    9 x 10"

 

KELLYANN BURNS   11:03 AM  9/01/14, 2014    Oil on alu-dibond    10 x 10"

SIRI BERG:  Color and Space    [Hionas Gallery through February 7]
Color and Space focuses on two series of Berg's paintings and works on paper from the 1970s and 1980s. Berg, who is now in her nineties, has long worked with themes and variations, selecting geometric forms and systematically engaging in extended explorations. This is geometric abstraction with an emphasis on symmetry along with variations in color. In developing a series, Berg produces numerous small works on paper, repeating and manipulating the formal compositions as she modifies the palette. In contrast with the paintings of Burns, Berg's compositions and her application of paint are minimalist, and quickly reveal their essence to the viewer.  

La Ronde, a series from the late 1960s through the 1970s, features semi-circles set into a square, sometimes singly but often in a sequence. The palette of the series ranges from muted to brightly colored. Kabbalah (1980s) is an exploration of the square with more subdued and subtle color variations. According to the gallery press release, Berg was working with elements of color, space and form to connect with the rule of ten (derived from the Kabbalah, a form of Jewish mysticism).   Images courtesy Hionas Gallery.

SIRI BERG   La Ronde, 1971    Oil on paper    20 x 20"

SIRI BERG   La Ronde, 1972  Acrylic on Masonite    34 x 34"

SIRI BERG   La Ronde, 1972    Acrylic on masonite

SIRI BERG   Study for Kaballah, 11 x 8.5 inches, oil on paper

SIRI BERG   Study for Kaballah, 11 x 8.5 inches, oil on paper

SIRI BERG   Kaballah, 1982   oil on canvas    30 x 60"

For additional information on geometric abstraction:
Geoform is a website featuring paintings by several hundred contemporary artists as well as in depth interviews. 
The Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History offers a brief overview of the genesis of geometric abstraction. 

Current and recent exhibits including geometric abstraction:
A Few Conversations about Color @ DM Contemporary CLICK HERE for catalog (up through February 28)
Ward Jackson: Black & White Diamonds @ Minus Space (September 2014)
Doppler Shift @ the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey   (September 2014 - January 2015)

Altoon Sultan | McKenzie Fine Art

After following Sultan’s work for several years via her blog and FB, I was delighted to see the exhibition at McKenzie Fine Art in New York (up through November 16).  I first wrote about Sultan’s work two years ago here, highlighting her prints (potato and cardboard) and textiles (hooked wool drawings and textiles), which demonstrated her facility working with simple forms and at times pedestrian materials to produce bold and playful images.   

Sultan is an artist whose work cannot be neatly categorized, whether one considers her imagery or the medium. Rather than confining herself to one primary direction, she pursues several parallel bodies of work. What they all share is her pursuit of elegant geometry, subtle use of color, as well as her expertise and delight in the process of making. 

SULTAN, Curves and Square, 2013   Egg tempera on parchment stretched over wood panel    6 1/2 x 7 1/2 inches

  

This show, which includes nearly thirty pieces, offers quite an array of work by this versatile artist – intimate paintings executed in egg tempera, drawings on hand-toned paper, and hooked wool wall textiles.  Although linked by her attention to balancing form and color, each medium offers Sultan a different expressive vocabulary. It is also clear that for Sultan, preparing the materials is an engaging and meaningful part of her practice. The egg tempera paintings are executed on calfskin parchment stretched over wood panels; she hand dyes the wool for the textiles, and hand-tones the paper for her drawings.

The hooked wool textiles are the most reductive and visually striking of all Sultan’s works.  While the geometric forms are bold, the hooking process yields a rich surface texture comprised of numerous small strokes, gently undermining the minimalist sensibility of the compositions. Additionally, the size of each ‘stitch’ is such that the forms are often imperfect, with irregular edges. Although Sultan sometimes dips into illusionist space in this body of work, most of the textiles are strong figure/ground compositions. So while many of her textiles give a hat tip to Russian constructivism, those formal inclinations are balanced with a bit of whimsy.  (It is unfortunate that only five of Sultan's textiles are included in the exhibit, not giving them the presence they deserve).

SULTAN, Red Bars, 2014   Hand-dyed wool on linen    12 x 10 inches

SULTAN, Blue Arc, 2014   Hand-dyed wool on linen    25 3/4 x 12 inches

The drawings (egg tempera and graphite) on hand-toned paper seem to reflect another aspect of Sultan’s aesthetic—and I find viewing them to be somewhat spiritual, not unlike the meditative effect of Tantric drawings. In various interviews, Sultan mentions that this body of work was prompted by time spent at the Islamic wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  Sultan tones the papers in hues ranging from subdued to saturated, and each sheet is rich with the irregularities of the dying process. Along with the overlay of painted forms, the networks of intersecting circles (drawn in graphite) remain quietly visible, hinting at the many possible directions inherent in each piece. These drawings have an air of mystery and merit slow looking.

 

 

SULTAN, #5, 2012   Egg tempera and graphite on hand-toned paper   15 x 15 inches

SULTAN, #31, 2014   Egg tempera and graphite on hand-toned paper   15 x 15 inches

SULTAN, #9, 2014   Egg tempera and graphite on hand-toned paper   15 x 15 inches

Sultan’s very intimate paintings (several as small as 6 x 8") are derived from her photographs of farm machinery, and focus on the geometry of the forms. By zooming in and closely cropping her images, she essentially rules out a consideration of subject matter. Rather, Sultan concentrates on capturing light and shadows, and juxtaposing small elements of these machine-made implements against one another, all in service to the composition. Yes, there is light and shadow -- pointing to depth and illusion, yet these are not depictions of objects. The irregular silhouettes of the shadows add a bit of surprise and spatial ambiguity to the compositions. Elements of the man-made world have been distilled and transformed into elegant, carefully balanced abstractions.

 

SULTAN, Blue Verticals, 2014   Egg tempera on parchment stretched over wood panel    8 1/4  x 6 1/8 inches

SULTAN, Light Fingers, 2014   Egg tempera on parchment stretched over wood panel    6 x 8  inches

SULTAN, Red Hose, 2014   Egg tempera on parchment stretched over wood panel    6 1/4 x 8 1/4 inches

SULTAN, Linked, 2014   Egg tempera on parchment stretched over wood panel    5 1/4 x 9 1/2 inches

Click here to read a 2013 interview with Sultan, conducted by Jeff Hogue on Figure/Ground. 

Summer round-up

As NYC galleries close their doors for the late-summer break, here's a glimpse of what I saw at several group exhibits......
 
DOPPLER
at Parallel Art Space

Curated by Mel Prest, Doppler features work by 22 artists who explore the interplay of two and three dimensional space, often hovering in a sensory space between the two.  The installation beautifully highlights dialogues between clusters of adjacent works. With the exception of a wall painting by Gilbert Hsiao and a large canvas by Karen Schifano, all of the pieces on exhibit are intimate in size. 

The work on view spans a wide variety of approaches to art-making: ranging from the pared down elegance of Brent Hallard, Kevin Finklea and Richard Bottwin, to the complex surfaces of Mel Prest, Stephen Maine and Steven Baris, and the subtle geometries of Debra Ramsay and Nancy White.

For a comprehensive walk through of the exhibit, click here to see photographs taken by Richard Bottwin, one of the artists whose work is in the exhibit.  

There is still one more weekend to see this wonderful exhibit, which closes on Sunday, August 18.

Installation view, left wall GILBERT HSIAO.   photo from Parallel Art Space FB page

From top left, counter-clockwise:  ALBERT ROSKAM, RICHARD BOTTWIN, RUTH VAN VEENEN, photo courtesy of Richard Bottwin

                From left to right:  GRACE KHOUW, STEPHEN MAINE, MEL PREST, EDGAR DIEHL                   photo courtesy of Richard Bottwin

 Parallel Art Space, 17-17 Troutman Street, Ridgewood NY 



STRAIGHT LINES IN FIVE DIRECTIONS
at Garvey|Simon Art Access in Chelsea

Explorations of the straight line by five artists working with different intentions and in a variety of materials.

SUSAN SCHWALB    Toccata #60, 2013     Mixed metalpoint on paper   9 x 9 inches

You can see more work by Schwalb by clicking here.

KATE CARR    Block E, 2012    Baltic birch plywood and felt   20 x 5 x 3 inches

See more work by CARR by clicking here. 

 

   DAN WALSH   Untitled (OGV-Violet, OGV-Green & OGV-Orange), 2007      Set of three woodcuts,  each 23 x 49 inches

You can see more prints by Walsh by clicking here.

This group exhibit (with work by Kate Carr, Susie Rosmarin, Susan Schwalb, James Siena and Dan Walsh) remains up through August 23.  Garvey|Simon Art Access, 547 West 27th Street, New York.  Photos from the gallery website.


RETICULATE
at McKenzie Fine Art

The focus of this group exhibit was work in which webs and nets play a role in the construction of space. Reticulate features work by 17 artists which vary in size from the intimate ink on paper drawings of Lori Ellison and small panels by Laura Sharp Wilson to large canvases by Jason Karolak and Jason Rohlf.

 

IVO RINGE    Right on Top of the Skin, 2011    Acrylic on linen     28 x 24 inches

 To see more work by Ivo Ringe, click here.

LORI ELLISON    Untitled, 2012    Ink on paper    11 5/8 x 8 1/4

 For more work by Lori Ellison, click here.

CATHRYN ARCOMANO   Mirea Series #33, 1981    Oil on canvasette   10 3/4 x 11 3/4 inches

MARK SHEINKMAN    Mercer, 2013    Oil, alkyd and graphite on paper     16 x 13 inches

For more by Mark Sheinkman, click here.

McKenzie Fine Art, 55 Orchard Street, NYC. The exhibit includes the work of 17 artists and is up through August 17.  Photos from the gallery website.