Printmaker and sculptor Elizabeth Catlett, who died in 2012, still feels quite alive through her life’s work. I visited the Cantor Gallery at the College of the Holy Cross having intentionally avoided reviewing the press material sent for its “The Art of Elizabeth Catlett from the Collection of Samella Lewis” so that I would react to the art without preconception. That changed in hurry as I realized that much of her work had been a subliminal part of my life, whether seeing it growing up in the city that gave the world Abbie Hoffmanand that had many social programs in its neighborhoods, or in my teenage years that followed as I became more aware of social and political protests. It felt warm and familiar and my thoughts turned to wondering how the college students who get to use the show as a backdrop for their fall studies were reacting to the work at a time that on-campus activism … [Read more...] about STILL CONFRONTING INJUSTICE: ELIZABETH CATLETT’S TIMELESS WORKS AT CANTOR GALLERY
Artscope Issues
DOUBLE MEANINGS AT WORK: ROY AND LAU’S ABSTRACT CONNECTIONS AT MONTSERRAT
It’s difficult to make out what you’re looking at. At first, it seems vaguely like an upside-down human head. But what would serve as a skull is a black vessel imprinted with flowers and leaves, and a raven ponytail grows out a would-be neck. Then there are the tan and lace-like patches creating a checkered patchwork across what would be a face, and the cream-colored nodules and protuberances growing nearly everywhere — some of which resemble reproductive organs. Meanwhile, a vastly different piece holds a similar curiosity: The silhouette of a chicken runs across dozens of rectangles on a Japanese paint color chart; the many hues arranged in neat rows include “luminous lemon,” “primary magenta” and “leaf green.” The former, “Ch’ing Nasty,” is a paper and hair collage by Jessica Lau; the latter a monotype by Rob Roy. (To read more, pick up a copy of our latest issue! Find a … [Read more...] about DOUBLE MEANINGS AT WORK: ROY AND LAU’S ABSTRACT CONNECTIONS AT MONTSERRAT
SERENITY, BEAUTY & PEACE: THE GUILD’S SISTERS OF THE BRUSH PROVIDE NEEDED WARMTH
“Sisters of the Brush and Palette: Women Artists of the Guild” displays the art by all the women members of the Guild of Boston Artists, founded in 1914. The 15 artists display art that is serene, beautiful and deliciously painted and sculpted. In our current Covid-induced state of anxiety, social distrust and racial turmoil, their art is a welcome respite. Hopefully, there will always be a place for serenity, beauty and peace in our lives. Gertrude Fiske and Lilian Westcott Hale were founding members of the Guild, and current members follow in their tradition. Member Christina Mastrangelo’s paintings reflect on the world around her, with or without gender identity in mind. “I am interested in making paintings that speak to who we really are, not as seen by the male gaze, but from the gaze of a female artist,” Mastrangelo said. Five of the women direct their gaze to portraits of … [Read more...] about SERENITY, BEAUTY & PEACE: THE GUILD’S SISTERS OF THE BRUSH PROVIDE NEEDED WARMTH
A BLURRING OF EDGES: MATTHEW’S IMAGES OF SOCIAL COMMENTARY AT NEWPORT
Pointed engagement of social commentary, coupled with experimentalism with the presentation of photography as a medium are both hallmarks that define the artwork of photographer and installation artist Annu Palakunnathu Matthew. Through January 9, 2022 at Newport Art Museum, audiences can experience Matthew’s mid-career retrospective, “ReVision,” curated by Dr. Francine Weiss. The show is installed in four museum galleries that are located in the John N.A. Griswold House. The galleries relate a range in approach by the artist, from intimate dissolving animations on small wall hung iPad screens framed as traditional photographs, to monumental projected videos and more traditional appearing photographs. A simple looking, but complex to achieve, installation by Matthew fills one gallery and includes digitized World War II film footage projected onto dhotis, traditional Indian clothing … [Read more...] about A BLURRING OF EDGES: MATTHEW’S IMAGES OF SOCIAL COMMENTARY AT NEWPORT
A REBELLIOUS ELOQUENCE: “NEW PHOTOGRAPHY” ON DISPLAY AT ADDISON GALLERY
The Addison Gallery of American Art on Phillips Academy’s Andover, Massachusetts campus is one of the most comprehensive of its kind in the world. Impressively, its collection includes nearly 22,000 objects that span a timeline that begins in the early 18th century and ends today. As if that weren’t enough, admission to the Addison is notoriously free. My visit felt as expansive as its collection; meandering through the space felt less like a gallery visit than a trip back in time, to be sure. The purpose of my visit, however, was singular: to explore the gallery’s latest exhibition “Language, Sequence, Structure: Photographic Works by Lew Thomas, Donna-Lee Phillips, and Hal Fischer,” which will be on view through January 23. With the promise of these three artistic powerhouses on display, I had little doubt of returning home disappointed. This prediction was correct. Thomas, … [Read more...] about A REBELLIOUS ELOQUENCE: “NEW PHOTOGRAPHY” ON DISPLAY AT ADDISON GALLERY
PAINTING A DAILY SHOW OF STRENGTH: DONALD LANGOSY’S HOME AT MULTICULTURAL ART CENTER
Just at the tipping point of the 19th into the 20th century, Paul Gauguin gave us an operator’s manual for humankind in a painting he brought back to Paris from Tahiti: “Where are we going? What are we? Where do we come from?” He had trouble unloading his painting, for keeps — too many questions — until Boston’s own Museum of Fine Arts bought it in the 1930s, where it’s now a staple of modern art. The manual, though reluctantly at first, was picked up by other artists who wanted to be thoroughly modern. And these artists ran with it in every direction, from modern to postmodern — onwards. “Excerpts from My Studio,” the art of Donald Langosy, now on view at the Multicultural Arts Center in East Cambridge, Massachusetts, traces one of those trajectories, in all its twists and turns, in all its personal vicissitudes. And it’s a dinner plate heaped, in … [Read more...] about PAINTING A DAILY SHOW OF STRENGTH: DONALD LANGOSY’S HOME AT MULTICULTURAL ART CENTER