Sunday, November 1, 2015

Philadelphia Exhibitions Seen and To See

Christopher Knowles, Institute of Contemporary Art
So many good shows to behold here in Philadelphia!  I have seen some and I have some on my list of must-see to share.  First, those that I have seen.  

The Institute of Contemporary Art has some killer painting shows right now.  Christopher Knowles is downstairs in the biggest space.  His work spans a range of years and materials.  I gravitated most to paintings like that above and the typewriter word poems.  It is a chance to look inside a really unique process, Knowles is an autistic artist who has been making this work and performances since the early 70s.  I recently heard an interview with him and his wife, stumbled upon completely coincidentally, on KCRW's The Organist, podcast.  I wish it had more from him and less from her, when he talks you can hear the way memory is ever-present in his mind and it gives the work context.  The show feels equally visual and audio, as you read the words in your mind, the rhythm on the page and the rhythm of the words work together in beautiful ways.

Christopher Knowles, Institute of Contempory Art (photo courtesy of ICA)


Becky Suss, Institute of Contemporary Art

Upstairs is a show of really good painting by Philadelphia artist Becky Suss.  I have liked her work for a while and remain a fan.  Here is a nice review of the show by Samantha Mitchell on Title Magazine.


Jan Baltzell, Schmidt Dean Gallery

A lyrical show about color and line is at Schmidt Dean gallery.  Jan Baltzell, a former graduate critic of mine, is showing new work.  Ranging from charcoal drawings to paintings on mylar to large scale canvas paintings (above) those formal concerns are engaged in masterful ways.  I could almost not bear to put up this photo as it is such a bad representation of such a good show but it is the only one I got in such a crowded opening and a show that needs to be shared and seen in person.  Here is a link to an online catalog with much better images but see in person!










Yvonne Jacquette, Seraphin Gallery
A show that doesn't seem to be getting much notice but is worth seeing is at Seraphin.  Some interesting paintings by Yvonne Jacquette there.  Again the image does no justice here to the rich, dense build up of black night sky in this drawing.


There was a very good show at Gross McCleaf of paintings by Ying Li which unfortunately closed yesterday.  Where are the months going?  You can still see it digitally on their website though.

Now for the things I want to see but haven't yet...

Jennifer Bartlett, Untitled(Hospital), 2012 (Image courtesy of Locks Gallery)
I have been making paintings that are much darker and so I was interested in Jacquette's show and am also curious to see this series of paintings by Jennifer Bartlett on view at Locks Gallery through November 13.  They are all done from the viewpoint of a hospital window or hallway. 

Neysa Grassi's show has one more week at the Delaware Center for Contemporary Art.  I don't see how I will make it but I really hope time stops and I find myself there, her work is always so good in person.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art just opened its Still life show Audubon to Warhol.  Still life is the best.  It is an under appreciated genre that I think has so much material for curators to look at.  Glad this show is up, hoping to take students to it but I will certainly be there a few times before it closes January 10.

Pagus Gallery in Norristown has a show with some really good abstract painters.  The website is pretty bad but the line up is good: Mark Brosseau, Clint Jukkala, Lucy Mink, Brooke Moyse, and Enrico Riley.  I'm going to try to get up there this week, the show closes November 13th.  Below is a photo I was able to find via facebook.
Clint Jukkala, Mark Brosseau and Enrico Riley, Pagus Gallery show Walk the Line

There is a show of three good painters that just opened at Cerulean Arts too.  Laura Adams, Claire Kincade and Joyce Werwie Perry.  They are giving a talk Sunday November 8th at 2pm.  

Finally, there is a good Review Panel hosted by PAFA.  Discussion by artists and critics of shows in the area.  So much cross-over!...The Philadelphia art world is a good place to be a painter right now...

"On Wednesday, November 18 at 6 p.m., David Cohen will be joined by guest panelists Sharon Butler, Edward Epstein, and Clint Jukkala to discuss the following exhibitions:

1 comments:

Unknown said...

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