ANDREA SCHWARTZ - WORTH RYDER (UC BERKELEY)

Reported by Kathryn Arnold and DeWitt Cheng

01.27.10

Andrea Schwartz Gallery : Jamie Brunson and Catherine Dudley.

Review by Kathryn Arnold: A very worthwhile exhibition, the optical visual content of Jamie Brunson's paintings contrasting sharply with the quiet collaged compositions of Catherine Dudley.

The stark color fields of Brunson play with monochromatic visual sensations of waves of color and one is reminded that color is in itself a field of energy with no substance (see this quick tutorial called The Basics of Light ). Each field of color in her works radiates outward (maybe inward, depending on your point of view) and she has incorporated a pattern, often an organic element or a geometric element that, within Jamie's hands, becomes a shifted subtle radiating moment in time. Colors range from brilliant high intensity hues to more subtle ranges of pastels (i.e. sherbet greens and icy blues). A must-see in person. The most mesmerizing views come from the larger works and in the blue 'weave'-- what has she done with the grid!!! Overall these works feel minimalist in nature (excepting the color) and her quoting of John's Target and Noland's circular forms (seen in Brunson's Encircle) in this way is quite interesting.

By contrast, Catherine Dudley's works are formal compositions that are bent upon allowing us to examine the relationships between shape, pattern, and line as they are together presented. The works on exhibition are smaller in size ranging from around 24" x 18" to as small as 8.5" x 6". The focus on detail and individual elements, often organized in asymmetrical relationships, is beautifully executed in Catherine's repertoire. I personally am pleased to be able to view collages, which seem to be making a splash not just in the Bay Area but also in NYC (see Rip it Up and Start Again ). Catherine's collages seem to not be inspired by 'laws of chance' but more by the precise placement of shapes, referencing Motherwell. She appears to incorporate notebooks, papers and trims with patterns in such a way that, in a few, I feel I am sitting at a school desk, bored by the lecture and using that time to create. In "Picnic," a nice play of drop shadows enhances the shallow depth. Lovely works-- mixing precise with casual (casual in choice of collaged elements).

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Worth Ryder Gallery , UC Berkeley: CYNOSURE.

Artists: Laura Ball, Torsten Z. Burns, Ross Campbell, Jen Cohen, Lana Crooks, Julia C.C. Davis, Mark Dukes, Christina Empedocles, Jana Flynn, Peter Foucault, Sade Huron, Michelle Huber, Jeremiah Jenkins, Keira Kotler, Therese Lahaie, Cybele Lyle, Justin Margitich, Tadashi Moriyama, Jennie Ottinger, Miguel Perez, Joey Potts, Jeremy Regan, Jenn Shifflet, Julia Shirar, Keer Tanchak, Geoffrey Trapp, Derek Weisberg. Ethan Worden; and the teams/collaboratives (at least think they are, though some might be noms de guerre), Animal Charm, Motorbot, Double Parlor, RKDB, Rsinart, and Wisechick.

Review and images by DeWitt Cheng: This is a survey, curated by Bay Area teacher and writer Anuradha Vikram, of work from artists affiliated with eleven Berkeley and Oakland galleries-- Alphonse Berber Gallery, Art@theOakbook, Blankspace Gallery, Chandra Cerrito Contemporary, Hatch Gallery, Johansson Projects, Krowswork Gallery and Project Space, Pueblo Nuevo Gallery, Rowan Morrison Gallery, Swarm Gallery, and Terminal 22. East Bay art mavens will certainly have seen some of this work before, but the show provides a quick snapshot of what's happening now, and it's just across the street from the Berkeley Art Museum, in Lowie Hall (T-Sat 12-5). A cynosure is something that attracts all eyes; within this variety of styles and media is something for everyone-- from imagined, artificial landscapes and artifacts to symbolic portraits and still lives to semi-absurdist machines for art-making.

***