Visual art exhibitions and events with a platform for critical writing
Angel Row Gallery, Nottingham 20 January – 10 March
Reviewed by: S Mark Gubb
This exhibition came about in a very organic way. Artist-curator Maggie Ayliffe approached one artist who, in the course of conversation, identified another artist with whom she felt a certain affinity, and so the chain went on until they arrived at the seven artists in 'Warped'.
This exhibition both challenged and dispelled certain preconceptions I held about going to view a show of abstract work. Shirley Kaneda's work is abstract in the same way as Fiona Rae's: it is hectic but very controlled. Paint swirls over and under itself and other planes of patterned colour, but whilst your eye is drawn randomly around the surface of the work, its execution is verging on the meticulous. There is no evident bleeding of colour or random strikes of a brush. There appears to be a definite structure at work.
Maggie Ayliffe's work is reminiscent of a section from a Tom Wesselman piece, in particular the piece on offer here titled Lip Service, due to the defined blocks of colour which the artist herself likens to a jigsaw.
Valerie Jaudon's paintings work on a variety of optical levels. Most immediate and striking are the spiky black silhouettes regimented over the surface which have the same prickly and seductive effect as much of Cathy de Monchaux's work. The different layers compound into a dynamic depth of field, reminiscent of looking through railings at a slightly awkward angle, or at a forest from a moving car.
Letting the side down, for me, is Joanne Greenbaum, whose work appears to be nothing more than oversized phone-pad doodles, lent credibility by their execution on large canvases. Each sports the title Untitled and with so little aesthetic to work with I just couldn't find a way in.
All told, this is a good show that, I'm sure, will cause a few people to reconsider any preconceptions they may have on hearing the word 'abstract'.
Writer detail:
S MARK GUBB
is an artist and writer.
smarkgubb@hotmail.com |
www.smarkgubb.com
Venue detail:
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