In the art world, the human face and form can seize a viewer’s attention like little else.
Figurative works by 13 Ohio artists make up "Go Figure," an eclectic exhibit at the Riffe Gallery.
“This exhibition gathers a diverse, multigenerational group of artists who depict a rich and deeply insightful interest in observation and narrative," Charles McWeeny wrote in a curator's statement.
The show encompasses more than 60 works — paintings, prints and sculptures among them.
Despite the potentially overwhelming quantity, each work leaves an impression.
The speed of modern life is the focus of Gregory Spaid's inkjet prints, which feature figures in a blur of motion. The subjects shown in Man in Green Trench Coat and Woman With Magenta Coat are on the move, not pausing to see the world around them. Perhaps that explains Spaid’s blank backgrounds.
On the other hand, details define works in oil and acrylic by Frank Oriti, who paints young people with strong personal styles. For example, Side Effects II depicts the profile of a young woman with dark, bluntly cut hair, which is neatly complemented by the black-and-white stripes of her shirt.
Juliellen Byrne’s ceramic sculptures present human figures fused to the bodies of various animals. In Prague Dog (Flatfoot), the legs of a quizzical-looking child emerge out of the snouts of three dogs.
The oils on canvas by Laura Sanders are vividly clear in style, although the stories suggested by the works have a hint of mystery. In Without, two girls are seen swimming in a lake, with one whispering into the ear of the other; in Wooded Area #2, a girl looks at something unseen in the distance — at what, the viewer can only wonder.
Particulars are also withheld from Emil Robinson’s stunning oils on linen. In Polar Bear Club 3, swimmers congregate in and around a body of water, but their faces are only faintly sketched in. Meanwhile, From Notre Dame depicts the indistinct image of a boxer sparring in a ring. The gentle shades of green run counter to the brutal subject.
Fittingly, the works in pencil and oil on birch of Jaymi Zents recall — intentionally or not — those of a master of figurative painting: Gustav Klimt.
Tidal depicts a full view of a sad-faced female figure in a pink-toned dress, with a bent arm grasping for something; ornate designs are seen in the background. The viewer is reminded of Klimt’s famous Adele Bloch-Bauer I, which presents a similar picture.
Boasting equally striking works by such artists as Isabel Farnsworth, Clotilde Jimenez and Ed Valentine, this show is an embarrassment of riches.
Resource: http://www.dispatch.com
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