Shape In All Its Forms

An Online Exhibition
April 15 – June 17

 

Juried by Hunter Drohojowska-Philp

For many of the artists, shape was expressed in color. Most chosen here are painters and many were able to deliver a big punch. Shaped canvases or shapes within traditional formats — formal considerations since the dawn of Modernism —may not seem able to deliver anything new, but they did. Whether derived from the internet, Pantone charts or nature, color bloomed. Sensorially deprived, as we all are, I responded. 

Paintings here may be of quite unnatural intensity or soft response whether rendered in acrylic, oil or pastel. Some are literally soft. Made by quilting or stuffing, they offer rollicking pleasure combined with inviting tactility. Shapes themselves could be hard-edged geometry or voluptuous curves and often combinations of both. 

Every rainbow comes after a storm. Another group of works selected offer drama via the seeming neutrality of blacks, whites and grays. Using paint, collage, charcoal or graphite, the artists allow texture and chiaroscuro to define shape as light reveals shadows. A few defined time, quite literally made as they were during 2020, the year of drastically changed circumstances. 

In the end, the simple premise of Shape became a container for a vast array of options and proof that artists will never be done with this examination. The deeper they dive, the more treasures they find. 

– Hunter Drohojowska-Philp

All following commentaries have been written by Hunter Drohojowska-Philp

 

To address the issue of shape, a number of artists constructed their paintings in ways that depart from a traditional orientation.  

Wall 1

 

Dustyn Bork

“Dustyn Bork built his paintings around a void so the shapes are revealed as both exterior and interior presentations.”

Dustyn Bork
Shaped no. 1
Acrylic on shaped wood panel
42" x 28"
$2,000.00

Dustyn Bork
Shaped no. 7
Acrylic on shaped wood panel
26" x 22"
$1,400.00

Ryan Brady

“Ryan Brady used angular arrangements of stretcher bars as part of his compositions to disrupt the usual ideas about front and back.”

Ryan J. Brady
Skin and Bones
Acrylic paint, canvas, wood, aluminum, spray paint
38.25" x 37.25" x 1.25"
$12,500.00

Ryan J. Brady
One Man Band
Acrylic paint, canvas, wood, aluminum, spray paint
71" x 80" x 1.75"
$25,000.00

Ethal Poindexter

“Ethal Poindexter embraced the principle of pleasure in making literally loopy compositions in bold, singing colors.”

Ethel Poindexter
Hugs
Wood, linen, acrylic
60" x 48" x 2"
$1,800.00

Ethel Poindexter
Yipee!
Wood, Linen, Paint
27" x 49" x 2"
$1,600.00

Ethel Poindexter
RubberbandMan
Wood, Paint
55" x 32" x 1.5"
$1,600.00

Brigitte Radecki

“Brigitte Radecki creates dialog in works titled Flatland by using tones of a single color to affect perception of the flat supports.”

Brigitte Radecki
02. Flatland - aufbauen (rebuild)
Acrylic on acrylic board
36" x 48" x .8"
$7,000.00

Brigitte Radecki
03. Flatland- verbergen-(conceal)
Acrylic on laser cut acrylic board
36" x 36" x .8"
$7,000.00

Brigitte Radecki
02. Flatland - study for schweben (float)
Acrylic on paper mounted on wooden panel
12" x 12" x 1.5"
$1,200.00

Yvette Cohen

“Yvette Cohen stacked painted shapes on the wall in precarious arrangements that jog between notions of two and three dimensionality.”

Yvette Cohen
Juggling Rocks #26
Acrylic, oil paint, and wood dowels on shaped canvas
14" x 21" x .0625"
$3,000.00

Yvette Cohen
Juggling Rocks #8, Red Determination
Acrylic on shaped canvas
37.5" x 16" x .0625 "
$2,200.00

Ruin Kenzie

“Ruin Kenzie painted the metal or wood surfaces of cut-out shapes that are combined in unconventional, even eccentric ways as totems.”

Ruin Kenzie
Untitled HG2
Painting on aluminum
68" x 29" x .125"
$1,200.00

Ruin Kenzie
Untitled HG3
Painting on aluminum
48" x 32" x .125"
$1,400.00

Ruin Kenzie
Untitled
Painting on wood panel, mixed
51" x 51" x 1.5"
$1,500.00

Frederick Smith

“Frederick Smith found compelling tension between the geometry of thin lines and geometric forms within his oppositionally shaped canvases in shades of ochre.”

Frederick Smith
Untitled
Acrylic on panel
32" x 37" x 1"
$3,000.00

Frederick Smith
Untitled
Acrylic on panel
35" x 47" x 1"
$4,000.00

Katya Derksen

“Katya Derksen drew from a conceptual palette, the colors used by Texaco, in placing stripes of colored tape on a tile to vibrate on the diamond shape used for road signs.”

Katya Derksen
Stripes of Texaco 01
Tape on ceramic tile
13” x 13”
$500.00

Katya Derksen
Stripes of Texaco 02
Tape on ceramic tile
13” x 13”
$500.00

Steve Novick

“Steve Novick made subtle interventions on found panels of wood so that the natural grain butts against the daubs of unnatural color.”

Steve Novick
Cartoon Head (Nyah)
Wood, paint
10" x 12" x 1"
$1,000.00

Steve Novick
Lily
Wood, paint
10.5" x 9" x .75"
$1,000.00

Wall 2

Some artists used commonplace rectangular or square formats and found their power in relational shapes. 

 

Annie Sailer

“Annie Sailer’s compositions of rounded edges and lipstick pinks play with organic, indefinite shape and an unusual, sensual palette.”

Annie Sailer
in the world
Acrylic and Flashe on Canvas
48" x 48" x 1.5"
$2,000.00

Annie Sailer
in the world # 2
Acrylic and Flashe on Canvas
48" x 48" x 1.5"
$2,000.00

 

Aleya Hoerlein

“Aleya Hoerlein found radiance in simplified forms that vibrate in their proximity to one another bringing to mind the abstractions of Agnes Pelton or Georgia O’Keeffe.”

Aleya Hoerlein
The Space in Between, Number 3
Oil on Canvas
20" x 14" x 1.5"
$400.00

Aleya Hoerlein
The Space in Between, Number 4
Oil on Canvas on Wood Panel
14" x 11" x 1"
SOLD

 
 

Diane Novetsky

“Diane Novetsky created curvilinear puzzles of bright, clear colors that recall art deco shapes celebrated during the Pattern and Decoration movement.”

Diane Novetsky
Babylon Baroque
Acrylic on Canvas
60" x 54" x 2"
$9,000.00

Diane Novetsky
Goin' Fishin'
Acrylic on Canvas
60" x 54" x 2"
$9,000.00

Mel Reese

“Mel Reese painted seemingly simple and original shapes of color on neutral grounds that on closer examination revealed the tension between matte and glossy that confounds the eye.”

Mel Reese
RV 154 Prussian Blue Deep
Spray Paint on Canvas
24" x 18" x 1.5"
$750.00

Mel Reese
RV 234 Blue Green Dark
Spray Paint on Canvas
24" x 18" x 1.5"
$750.00

Edward Mills

“Edward Mills’ encaustic diptychs are modernist studies in using line to create organic or geometric forms”

Edward Mills Encaustic study #1  Encaustic  10.5" x 18.5" x 2"  $2,500.00

Edward Mills
Encaustic study #1
Encaustic
10.5" x 18.5" x 2"
$2,500.00

Edward Mills
Blue Flower
Encaustic on board
16" x 32" x 2"
$10,000.00

Wall 3

A number of artists drew from architectonic sources.

 

Mike Childs

“Mike Childs combined angular and gently curved shapes that bring to mind windows and buildings in suggested or imagined landscapes.”

Mike Childs
Animal Behavior H
Acrylic and Spray Paint on Canvas
24" x 24" x 2"
$4,000.00

Mike Childs
Long Distance
Acrylic on Canvas
48" x 72" x 2"
$10,500.00

Jennifer Small

“Jennifer Small’s tightly organized and sharply colored paintings produce a dynamic energy.”

Jennifer Small
Stairs to the Drying Rack
Acrylic and Spray Paint on Canvas
36" x 24" x 2.25"
$5,200.00

Jennifer Small
Summer Fridays are for the Beach
Acrylic on Canvas
20" x 16" x 2.25"
$2,500.00

Joseph Ostraff

Joseph Ostraff layered iconic forms and patterns in off-key colors that suggest both built and mental environments.”

Joseph Ostraff
my house on your house
Oils
44" x 40" x 2"
$10,000.00

Joseph Ostraff
yielding .1
Oils
44" x 40" x 2"
$10,000.00

Kathy Lucoff Godin

“Kathy Lucoff Godin used gestural method and neutral tones to convey the sensibility behind Moroccan tapestries and the women who make them.”

Kathy Lucoff Godin
Ghazoua Tapis #3
Acrylic and Pencil on Paper
12" x 9" x 1"
$450.00

Kathy Lucoff Godin
Ghazoua Tapis #2
Acrylic and Pencil on Paper
19" x 16" x 1"
$450.00

Nicholas Wood

“Nicholas Wood integrated curvilinear shapes in Easter egg pastels within deliberate and constructed geometric forms.”

Nicholas Wood
D80 Diptychs (arcs2).
Pastels, Charcoal on Paper
22.5" x 22.5" x 2"
$3,200.00

Nicholas Wood
D72 (gondolas)
Pastels, Charcoal on Paper
22.5" x 22.5" x 2"
$3,400.00

Amy Bassin

Amy Bassin’s abstractions, rosy or verdant, were based in both shape and concept on U.S. maps in atlases.” 

Amy Bassin
Travel Ban 02397
Drawing on Maps in USA Atlas
17" x 22"
$800.00

Amy Bassin
Travel Ban 01654
Drawing on Maps in USA Atlas
17" x 22"
$600.00

Shamira Nicolas

“Shamira Nicolas used Arabic and English numbers as the foundations for her calligraphic abstractions.”

Shamira Nicolas
AC 16 X 20 - 563
Acrylic on Canvas
16" x 20" x 0.5"
$700.00

Shamira Nicolas
AC 16 X 16 - 571
Acrylic on Canvas
16" x 16" x 0.5"
$700.00

Shamira Nicolas
AC 8 X 9 - 553
Acrylic on Canvas
8" x 9" x 0.4"
$450.00

Wall 4

Neutral tones and textures provided the foundation for establishing shape and form for many artists.

 

Eric Dever

“Eric Dever’s concentric circles of interlocking gray tones hum atop their surfaces of unprimed linen or burlap or canvas.”

Eric Dever
LUC XXl
Oil on Burlap
36" x 36" x 1.75"
$10,000.00

Eric Dever
IBMBCM
Oil on Canvas
36" x 36" x 1.75"
$10,000.00

Eric Dever
LUC IX
Oil on Linen
36" x 36" x 1.75"
$10,000.00

 

M. Benjamin Herndon

“M. Benjamin Herndon cubes were rendered barely visible in his near black studies of graphite and oil on canvas.”

M. Benjamin Herndon
Form No. 15
Graphite and Oil on Canvas
24" x 32" x 1.5"
$5,200.00

M. Benjamin Herndon
Form No. 10
Graphite and Oil on Canvas
24" x 34" x 1.5"
$4,000.00

M. Benjamin Herndon
Form No. 14
Graphite and Oil on Canvas
36" x 40" x 1.5"
$4,000.00

 
 

Katherine Hunt

“Katherine Hunt combined organic fiber forms, the hues and shapes of large stones, that appear to teeter in their positions.”

Katherine Hunt
Blue Delphinium no.1
Fiber, Canvas, Graphite, Glue, Acrylic
60" x 36" x 1.5"
$2,750.00

Katherine Hunt
Plaza Blanca no. 5
Fiber, Acrylic, Glue, Masonite
16" x 16" x .5"
$975.00

 

Julia Bloom

Julia Bloom made use of the slow sense of time passing in the pandemic by typing accounts of daily activities and then partially obscuring them with crisp hemispheric shapes of black charcoal.

Julia Bloom
February 17, 2021
Charcoal on Vintage Manual Typewriter Type on Paper
11" x 8.5" x 1"
$450.00

Julia Bloom
February 25, 2021
Charcoal on Vintage Manual Typewriter Type on Paper
8.5" x 11" x 1"
$400.00

Julia Bloom
January 15, 2021
Charcoal on Vintage Manual Typewriter Type on Paper
11" x 8.5" x 1"
$450.00

 

Stacey Lawrence

Stacey Lawrence painted bold black shapes on the texts of vintage maps or collaged surfaces in ways that bring out new meaning.

Stacey Lawrence
totem 1.
Mixed Media
13" x 10" x 1"
$610.00

Stacey Lawrence
undecided.
Mixed Media
36" x 36"
$2,000.00

Stacey Lawrence
totem 2.
Mixed Media
13" x 10" x 1"
$610.00

Rita Bard

“Rita Bard’s fantastical black silhouettes collate references to figures and forms in centered compositions that beckon further investigation.”

Rita Bard
islands 14
Acrylic on Canvas
20" x 16" x .5"
$600.00

Rita Bard
islands 6
Acrylic on Canvas
14" x 11" x .5"
$600.00

Rita Bard
island 13
Acrylic on Canvas
14" x 11" x .5"
$600.00

Wall 5

Some artists relied on soft materials to create illusions of form.

 

Gerri Spilka

“Gerri Spilka’s geometric abstractions of persimmon and lime were not painted but pieced fabrics enhanced by quilting.”

Gerri Spilka
Free Verse #16
Quilt
50" x 50" x .5"
$8,000.00

Niraja Lorenz

Niraja Lorenz composed elaborate relationships of circular and hexagonal forms of variously colored fabrics.”

Niraja Lorenz
Collision
Fiber
53" x 55" x 1"
$5,600.00

Niraja Lorenz
Cosmos 6 - Orbits
Fiber
33" x 29"
$1,800.00

Karl Goulet

“Karl Goulet riffed on the notion of a shaped composition with his stuffed paper and gold pillows of vaguely erotic suggestion.”

Karl Goulet
Glutton No. 25
Stuffed Parchment Paper, Mylar and Staples on Panel
12" x 12" x 3"
$950.00

Karl Goulet
Glutton No. 26
Stuffed Parchment, Paper and Mylar on Panel
8.5" x 8.5" x 3"
$350.00

Sienna Martz
Sienna Martz’s tufted and tassled or stuffed wall works combine the influences of soft sculpture and Sheila Hicks with the levity of Pop art.”

Sienna Martz
Slurp
Felt, Yarn, Paper, Chicken Wire, and MDF
39" x 31" x 12"
$3,295.00

Sienna Martz
Pink Pachanoi
Cotton, Nylon, Polyfil, Wood, Thread
30" x 30" x 12"
$2,490.00

Steven Rahbany

“Steven Rahbany arranged his serpentine stuffed shapes on wood panels to establish a contradictory response between soft and hard or sewed them into a flat canvas.”

Steven Rahbany
Thought #1
Wood, Fabric, Polyester Fiber Fill
48" x 24" x 1.5"
$500.00

Steven Rahbany
Blob #1
Fabric, Polyester Fiber Fill
30" x 24" x 2"
$300.00

 

Steven Rahbany
Thinking All Night
Wood, Fabric, Polyester Fiber Fill
48" x 24" x 1.5"
$500.00

Helena Chastel

“Helena Chastel balanced polyhedrons in painted aluminum and other materials in vertical totems with sly allusions to Modernist sculpture.”

Helena Chastel  Spanish Dance  Cor-Ten Steel, Aluminum, acrylic polyurethane  54" x 28" x 28"  $12,000.00

Helena Chastel
Spanish Dance
Cor-Ten Steel, Aluminum, acrylic polyurethane
54" x 28" x 28"
$12,000.00

Helena Chastel
Soft Construction
Cor-Ten Steel, Aluminum, acrylic polyurethane
54" x 28" x 28"
$12,000.00