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Josh Smith’s densely hung painting show, which was at Luhring Augustine until last week, comes at you with an intense optical force that accurately replicates the psychic energy of our topsy-turvy world. Smith’s paintings look like swirling, multicolored wallpaper patterns with green leaves or jumping fish in the middle. His surfaces shift from handmade to printed to Xeroxed and entice, confuse, and zap the eye. His sense of design, abstraction, and figuration all come forward at once. The paintings are well-made and smart but not about being 'important.' This releases all sorts of fresh air into the space around his painting, painting in general, and exhibitions. Two years ago a show like this might have seemed like a marketing ploy; now it feels like life. Whatever it was, it gave me a rush..."
Jerry Saltz: After the Orgy, New York Mag
1 comment:
OK. I read the article. Kitsch is out. Excess is out. We feel embarrased to like extravagance. Let's pretend it won't come back. It's a new matte world. The shame of our downfall must be answered by an appreciation of the 'sincere'. kneel and repent!!!
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