“HOW MANY MILES TO BABYLON: RECENT PAINTINGS FROM LOS ANGELES and NEW YORK” CURATED BY PETER FRANK
“How Many Miles To Babylon: Recent Paintings From Los Angeles and New York� Featured Artists: Chris de Boschnek, Fatemeh Burnes, Marc Dennis, Jedd Garet, F. Scott Hess, Heather Gwen Martin, Geraldine Neuwirth, and Lezley Saar Marc Dennis, Money Shot, 2015, Oil on linen, 80 x 40in. (203.2 x 101.6cm.)
HOW MANY MILES TO BABYLON: A NEW BAROQUE Peter Frank How Many Miles to Babylon acknowledges painting as a touchstone of vitality in America’s two largest art centers. The history of painting and the history of artistic experimentation reflect in the work of these eight artists, based at opposite ends of the country but united in their devotion to an obdurate and magical medium. Is there a New York school of painting anymore, or a Los Angeles school? There are certainly eddies of like-minded activity occurring in both places, some of those eddies evincing a genius loci, some of them manifesting an “international style” or cluster of styles. In this age of accessibility, of cyber-connections and frequent flying, after all, the art world has arguably become one immense cosmopolitan network. There is, for better or worse, no zone of ignorance, only pockets of avoidance. These eight artists do not work in a vacuum, but, as mature talents, they know what it is they each need to paint. This exhibition, then, celebrates independent thinking and quirky mindsets while honoring tradition – or, rather, traditions, traditions established in the last few years or the last few centuries. The art in How Many Miles to Babylon ranges from hyper-realism to non-objective abstraction, narrative figuration to painting-as-object, surrealist space to digital capture. Some works fall comfortably under one or another familiar rubric, some do not, but all betray a knowledge of western and non-western art histories and an urge, a need, to synthesize or reconcile disparate, perhaps discordant modes and styles. In the process of synthesizing such heterogeneous art, these painters together bespeak a distinct sensibility introducing – or, rather, re-introducing – itself into contemporary discourse. Clearly not all cut from the same cloth, their paintings share a tonality that aligns them into a coherent, even cohesive, whole. How does this exhibition, comprising pure abstraction, narrative figuration, formal pastiche, optical ambiguity, material exploration, and various other approaches, make the visual sense it does? Why do these works talk to one another? How is it their voices meld as they do? How Many Miles to Babylon was not supposed to be a lesson in style, only a lesson in geography, and perhaps history. Each of these eight artists works in one of two places and paints with consummate skill, insight, and experience. That can suffice to comprise an attractive and intriguing show appropriate for the inauguration of a new gallery space. To be sure, the individualism of these eight artists would evade any attempt to link them into a stylistic continuum, much less allow them to be boxed into a new “movement,” and no rhetorical, much less ideological, stance was intended to support them or their selection. But the show’s assembly – the exigencies of the newly furbished space demanding large paintings and small, elaborate paintings and simple, loud paintings and quiet – revealed a shared quality among the works even as they were moved around, hung and re-hung. The work in How Many Miles is painterly and sensuous, even where paint is used sparely and surfaces are smooth and calm. The art’s sensuousness does not result from
the physical presence of paint or any other material, but presumes such presence and puts it to work in the construction of an elaborate visual mechanism. In other words, the picture, no matter how elusive or fragmented, comes first, and physical and technical factors, no matter how pronounced, serve it. The paintings share a dense sense of space, usually the result of thick, layered or even tangled composition and invariably the result of a wealth of detail. The works, irrespective of their size, display an expansive sense of pictorial space – and, one feels almost somatically, an expansive sense of spiritual space. These paintings brim with ideas, not just about painting or art but about the universe around and inside us. Perhaps as a result, they brim with mystery. They are at once transcendental visual experiences and real, rollicking, down-to-earth commentary on the human condition. Your eye understands these apparitions before your brain does, perhaps because your inner child responds before your outer adult can stand back and analyze. Still, in their intricacies, the paintings invite analysis, engaging you with flashes, blatant and subtle by turns, of wit, pathos, poetry, and theatricality. Without going into point-by-point art-historical elaboration, it can be claimed that the paintings in How Many Miles to Babylon evince an updated Baroque sensibility, one that conflates the spirit and the flesh, the sacred and the profane, the real and the impossible. Manner and technique, pushed to the point of virtuosity, predominate; they call attention not to themselves, however, but to the entirety of the pictorial experience. The works indicate that, whether through chance or through dogged search, their makers have come upon something spectacular but not vacuous, some phenomenon at once necessary and unlikely. If this is what can substitute for religious revelation in XXI-century America, these artists, among others, may constitute a painterly counter-Reformation, one that militates against rather than for dogma. Is the appearance of this neo-Baroque sensibility on the gallery’s new walls simply happenstance? Is it a quirk of curatorial preference or that of the gallery’s? Is it a response, intentional or otherwise, to the elegance of the well-appointed space? It was not evident to me while choosing the artists or their work (and is not typical, or at least hasn’t been, to my own tastes). It was not evident to the artists themselves, most of whom met one another for the first time at the show’s opening and who have generally been only dimly aware of one another’s work. Is the idea of a “neo-Baroque” simply a convenient thread to lace through the paintings here? Well, yes, but not “simply.” The thread may be fragile, the premise (not articulated until the day before the show opened) may be presumptuous; but they hold. How Many Miles to Babylon was not meant as a polemical statement, and its contents should not subsume into any notion of a new art movement. It is enough that the art of eight veteran painters working in Los Angeles and New York should be assembled on their merits, at the invitation of a prominent gallery whose new home is designed to display work like this to maximum advantage. The emergence amidst these circumstances of a factor that distinguishes these artists according to their knowledge, abilities, and visions – a factor that reconsiders a historically established but still recondite artistic sensibility – is more than icing on the cake; it is demonstration that, in the Paleodigital Age, humans remain human and cultural memory endures.
CHRIS de BOSCHNEK Chris de Boschnek was born in Cannes, France in 1947. In 1956, at the age of 9, he moved to the United States with his family. After taking a handful of life drawing and painting classes at the Cleveland Art Institute, de Boschnek soon realized he had to be in New York City and moved there in 1972. In 1990, de Boschnek’s only child, Alexis, was born. During those first few years of parenthood, he took a hiatus from the world of art to focus on his family. He also fulfilled a dream and took two cross-country motorcycle trips to the Southwest to explore the various canyons and petroglyphs. The vastness of the desert was reminiscent of gazing across the Mediterranean’s endless horizon. After these inspiring trips, de Boschnek returned to making art, this time proceeding with a renewed esteem for process.
Chris de Boschnek, Untitled 19, 2014, Glass, Oil, Emulsions & Gold leaf, 27 x 23x 2in. (68.6 58.4 x 5.1cm.)
Chris de Boschnek, Untitled, No.15, 2015,
Glass, Mylar Velum, Gouache, pencil and silk,
above: Chris de Boschnek, Untitled No.4, 2015, Glass, Wire mesh, Emulsions, oil and Shredded coppies of 4th Amendment, 28 x 25 x 2in. (71.1 x 63.5 x 5.1cm.)
right: Chris de Boschnek, Untitled No.11, 2015, Glass, oil, emulsions, canvas, pins & rubber, 25 x 25 x 2in. (63.5 x 63.5 x 5.1cm.)
29 x 25 x 2in. (73.7 x 63.5
Chris de Boschnek, Untitled No.6, 2015,
Glass, Oils, Gesso, Emulsions, & pencil line on wall, 25 x 25 x 5in. (63.5 x 63.5 x 12.7cm.)
FATEMEH BURNES Fatemeh Burnes was born in Tehran. She first came to the United States in 1973, spent a five-year period between three continents, and settled in Southern California in 1977. Classically trained in Persian art and verse (she was mentored by her uncle, poet Salek Esfahani, and was featured on several radio programs devoted to poetry), Burnes also studied biology, modern Persian poetry, and western artistic practice – including painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, art history, and exhibition design – in Iran, Europe, and ultimately in California, where she received her BFA and MFA in art and art history. Since 1992 Burnes has served as gallery director and curator as well as full-time professor of drawing and design at Mt. San Antonio College, focusing in particular on art education and curriculum development in exhibition organization and design. At the gallery she has curated over 100 exhibitions, authored numerous publications, conducted art-education documentaries, and worked with an international array of artists and art professionals. She has exhibited her own work extensively since the 1980s.
Fatemeh Burnes, Lullaby, 2013-2015, Oil and pigment on canvas, 72 x 60in.(182.9 x 152.4cm.)
Fatemeh Burnes, Nightscapes 1, 2015, Oil, pigment, hand-made paper on wooden panel, 12 x 12in. (30.5 x 30.5cm.)
Fatemeh Burnes, Wonderland, 2014-2015, Oil and pigment on canvas, 72 x 108in. (182.9 x 274.3cm.)
Fatemeh Burnes, Between Rivers, 2014-2015, Oil, pigment, carving on copper mounted on wooden panel, 36 x 72in. (91.4 x 182.9cm.)
MARC DENNIS Marc Dennis is an American artist known for his hyper-realistic and strikingly detailed paintings of subtly staged and slightly voyeuristic images of contemporary American culture. Interested in the transformative possibilities of familiar iconic images and visual tropes, Dennis explores the charged subjects of beauty, power and pleasure. Born in Danvers, Massachusetts, Dennis was one of five sons. He received his B.F.A. from Tyler School of Art of Temple University in Philadelphia, PA and his M.F.A. from The University of Texas at Austin. His works have been included in numerous group and solo exhibitions in New York City, London, UK, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Houston and Seattle. His works are in numerous private and public collections, including those of Amy and John Phelan, Glenn and Amanda Fuhrman, Maria and Bill Bell, Beth DeWoody, Jennifer and David Stockman, Carl and Donna Hessel, Larry Gagosian, Larry and Marilyn Fields, Bob and Cortney Novogrtatz, Nancy Rogers, Michael and Jo Danoff, Sean and Tammy McCarthy, and The Neuberger Berman Collection, New York; The Blanton Museum of Art, University of Texas at Austin; The Springfield Museum of Art, Ohio, and the Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.
Marc Dennis, Ironman, Captian America, and a Russian Mobster Walk Into a Bar, 2015, Oil on linen, 80 x 60in. (203.2 x 152.4cm.)
Marc Dennis, The History of Civilation, 2014-2015, Oil on linen, 44 x 84in. (111.8 x 213.4cm.)
JEDD GARET Jedd Garet is an American sculptor, painter, and printmaker who was born in 1955. Influenced by surrealist painter Giorgio de Chirico, Garet uses garish colors in jarring contrasts to explore relationships between nature, man, and art. He combines human figures, classical architectural fragments and abstraction in narrative works, and is known for his amorphous life forms. In later work, figures, trees and other more recognizable objects were added to the minimalist flat ground, creating tension.
Jedd Garet, Architecture, 2013, Archival pigment on canvas, 91 x 51 in. (231.1 x 129.5cm.)
Jedd Garet, Swamp Gas, 2015, Archival pigment on canvas, 75 x 53in. (190.5 x 134.6cm)
Jedd Garet, Kenny Rogers, 2015, Archival pigment on canvas, 89 x 54in. (226.1 x 137.2cm.)
F. SCOTT HESS F. Scott Hess has been described as a “New Old Master”. His narrative portraiture blends realistic scenes of everyday life with symbolic and allegorical events, humor, eroticism, and voyeurism. He begins with drawings and careful diagramming on his canvases before adding traditional oil paint or egg tempera. Hess’s works are defined by his strong brushwork, careful attention to the luminosity of flesh, and ability to capture ethereal light. Some of his paintings are reimaginings of the works of canonical masters, such as Diego Velázquez and Jean-Antoine Watteau. Recently he has begun to examine the new possibilities that technology has opened up for his art-making practice. “Over the summer of 2013 I focused on three paintings where my subject matter derived from screwed-up iPhone panorama photographs,” he explains. “The way the panorama mode stitches together a scene is akin to the way human vision actually works. Movement engages the viewer at a preconscious level, eliciting an empathetic response before language can intercede.”
F. Scott Hess, Dancing at the Edge of Time, 2015, Oil on polyester canvas, 41 x 54.5in. (104.1 x 138.4cm.)
F. Scott Hess, In Transit, 2011, Oil on canvas, 84 x 144in. ( 2113.4 x 365.8cm.)
Heather gwen martin Born in 1977 in Saskatchewan, Canada, Heather Gwen Martin studied at the University of California, San Diego and The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Recent select exhibitions include Rogue Wave Projects: Heather Gwen Martin, L.A. Louver, Venice, CA (solo); Atmospheric Abstraction, Quint Gallery, La Jolla, CA; TOUCH, El Segundo Museum of Art, CA; NOW-ISM: Abstraction Today, Pizzuti Collection, Columbus, OH; Rogue Wave 2013, L.A. Louver, Venice, CA; Paradox Maintenance Technicians, Torrance Art Museum, CA; and The Very Large Array, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, CA. Her work is in part of permanent collections including the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego and the Ron and Ann Pizzuti Collection. Martin currently lives and works in Los Angeles.
Heather Gwen Martin, Cousins, 2015, Oil on linen,
20 x 21.5in. (50.8 x 54.6cm.)
Heather Gwen Martin, Stop Gap, 2015, Oil on Linen, 56 x 60in. (142.2 x 152.4cm.)
Geraldine Neuwirth Born in New York, artist Geraldine Neuwirth studied at the Otis College of Art and Design and was mentored by artist Martin Lubner. She creates bold, three-dimensional mixed-media paintings using pastel, ink, and collage, pulled from influences including circus, theater, and personal experience. Neuwirth exhibits regularly in New York and Los Angeles.
Geraldine Neuwirth, Crown Series in Black & White, 2015, Paper construction with mixed media, 35 x 44in. (88.9 x 111.8cm.) Photo by: Milcah Bassel
Geraldine Neuwirth, Cloud 1, 2014, Paper onstruction with mixed media, 73 x 112 x 5in. (185.4 x 284.5 x 12.7cm.) Photo by: Milcah Bassel
LEZLEY SAAR Lezley was born in Los Angeles to artist parents, Richard and Betye Saar, under the shadow of the Watts Towers, in 1953. While majoring in radio/TV/film at San Francisco State University, she worked at KPFA radio in Berkeley. Her works include paintings, drawings, book-works, photography, dioramas and video. Lezley’s different series; “The Athenaeum”, “Anomalies”, “Mulatto Nation”, “Tooth Hut”, “Autists’ Fables”, “Madwoman in the Attic”, “Monad”, and “Gender Renaissance”, deal with notions of race, gender, beauty, normalcy and sanity. Her work has been exhibited internationally, and nationally, and is included in contemporary museum collections such as The Kemper Museum, CAAM, The Ackland Art Museum, and MOCA.
Lezley Saar, ......Centrioles Later, 2014 Acrylic and digital photos on fabric on board, 20 x 16in. (50.8 x 40.6cm.)
Lezley Saar, The Silent Woman, 2015, Acrylic on fabric on board, 20 x 16in. (50.8 x 40.6cm.)
Lezley Saar, Vesta the Johnny, 2015 Acrylic on fabric on board, 20 x 16in. (50.8 x 40.6cm.)
Lezley Saar, The Lunatic, the Chaste, and the Unexpressive, 2014, Acrylic and photos on, fabric on board, 20 x 16in. (50.8 x 40.6cm.)
Lezley Saar, Celestial Bridge, 2014, Acrylic and digital photos on fabric, on board, 20 x 16in. (50.8 x 40.6cm.)
Jedd Garet, The Most Beautiful French Actress in Red Chiffon, 2015, Archival pigment and resin on canvas, 72 x 42in. (182.9 x 106.7cm.)
Geraldine Neuwirth, Rockin’, 2015, Paper construction with mixed media, 7 4 x 54in. (188 x 137.2cm.) Photo by: Milcah Bassel
Heather Gwen Martin, Antic, 2015, Oil on linen, 82.5 x 77in. (209.6 195.6cm.)
Geraldine Neuwirth, Pink Parade II, 2015, Paper construction with mixed media. 39 x 44in. (99.1 x 111.8cm.) Photo by: Milcah Bassel
Jedd Gartet, Red Riding, 2015, Archival pigment on canvas, 45.5 x 45.5in. (circumference) (115.6 x 115.6cm.)
Lezley Saar, Lady Calantha, 2012, Acrylic and digital photos on fabric on board, 36 x 27in. (91.4 x 68.6cm.)
Fatemeh Burnes, Nightscapes 2, 2015, Oil, pigment, hand-made paper on two wooden panels, 12 x 12in. (30.5 x 30.5cm)
Fatemeh Burnes, Self Portrait (After Me), 2015, Oil, pigment, hand-made paper, carving on mounted wooden panel, 12 x 24in. (30.5 x 61cm.)
Photo by: Cece Buneo
Lezley Saar, Whose Reality Are You?, 2014, Acrylic and digital photos on fabric, on board, 20 x 16in. (50.8 x 40.6cm.) Photo by: Ed Chang
Photo by: Ed Chang
Photo by: Cece Buneo
Photo by: Cece Buneo
Photo by: Ed Chang
Photo by: Pamela Yudlowitz
Photo by: Ed Chang
F. Scott Hess, Suzie Q, 2011, Oil on aluminum panel, 48 x 36in. (121.9 x 91.4cm.)