Four Abstract Artists
On Cover: Detail of Jane Schiowitz's "Momentum"
Four Abstract Artists Featuring Elizabeth Gilfilen, Lucas Kelly, Jane Schiowitz, and Fran Shalom
On View March 29th - May 5th, 2018
Elizabeth Gilfilen Elizabeth Gilfilen’s large-scale paintings are imposing, tumultuous works of gestural abstraction. The frenzied paint application is vigorously worked, resulting in varying depths and textures on the final surface. Her color palettes are, at times, challenging, but these recent works lean more harmonious. The angst remains, however, in the mark-making.
"Picket," 2017 Oil on canvas 42 x 40 in.
"Simmer," 2016 Oil on canvas 28 x 20 in.
Lucas Kelly Lucas Kelly’s sculptures are ambiguous forms intended to trigger a nostalgic response. His objects act as surrogates for memories that are just out of the mind’s grasp, the hazy remains of what has been lost to time. They represent the inability of memory to maintain narratives, yet the emotional attachment to the heart of those stories holds strong. These small wall sculptures in soft colors seemingly embody the concept of nostalgia itself.
"Plays Pretty for Baby," 2017 Acrylic and pumice on high density foam, resin, and wood 10 x 10 x 2 in.
"I Know It's Over," 2017 Acrylic on high density foam, resin, and wood 11 x 11 x 2 in,
"Take the Picture Now," 2017 Acrylic on high density foam, resin, and wood 10 x 10 x 3 in.
"Older Chests," 2017 Acrylic on high density foam, resin, and wood 12 x 14 x 2
"Tellings," 2017 Acrylic on high density foam, resin and wood 10 x 10 x 2
"Rock for Light," 2018 Acrylic on high density foam, resin and wood 23 x 18 x 3 in.
Jane Schiowitz Jane Schiowitz’s stark black and white paintings are an exploration of line and loose geometry. There is a give and take between intuitive mark-making and her imposed structure. Her process is evident, the ghosts of prior explorations are reminiscent of a chalkboard being erased and then rewritten. The final pieces can be seen, then, as a reflection on the passage of time and the process of painting.
"Momentum," 2015 Oil on canvas 34 x 34 in.
"Juncture," 2016 Oil on canvas 20 x 24 in.
Fran Shalom Fran Shalom’s paintings exist on the brink of recognition. Her playful forms flirt with nameable objects, yet shift out of reality just as the viewer thinks they have begun to sense hints of representation. Her Modernist technique is balanced with a pop sensibility represented by bold color choices. The relationships she presents are fraught, rarely succumbing to easy combinations.
"Foothold," 2018 Oil on canvas 24 x 24 in.
"Poke," 2018 Oil on panel 44 x 42 in.
Elizabeth Gilfilen has exhibited widely throughout the United States, including at The Painting Center, Hunterdon Art Museum, Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, and The Bronx Museum of the Arts. She has done residencies at Yaddo, The Bronx Museum of the Arts, and The Drawing Center. She has an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University, and lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. Lucas Kelly has exhibited throughout the United States and around the world, including at Ortega y Gasset Projects, Moscow State Museum of Modern Art, New Jersey State Museum, and PS1. He has an MFA from Mason Gross School of the Arts, and lives and works in Philadelphia, PA. Jane Schiowitz has exhibited widely around the United States, including at The Painting Center, the Paterson Museum, Snug Harbor Cultural Center, and the Parrish Art Museum. She has received grants from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. She has an MFA from Bard College, and lives and works in Nyack, NY. Fran Shalom has exhibited widely throughout the United States, including at the Painting Center, Fogg Art Museum, and Newark Museum. Her work is included in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Rose Art Museum. She has been the recipient of a MacDowell Colony Residency and an Art Omi Residency. She has an MFA in Painting from Montclair State University, and an MFA in Photography from the San Francisco Art Institute. She lives and works in Jersey City, NJ.